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Today in Africa — October 28, 2026: Egypt Convicts Mada Masr Editor Lina Attalah as Tanzania Announces First Gas Discovery in a Decade

OkayAfrica has scoured the Internet for today’s major news stories, so you don't have to. On Oct. 28, coverage includes: why OkayAfrica stands with Lina Attalah as Egypt’s flagship independent news outlet faces closure; an estimated 223 billion cubic feet of gas expected to start flowing in Tanzania early next month; and more.

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Lihle Z. Mtshali Today in Africa & Newsletters Editor
Portrait of Lina Attalah seated indoors in Cairo, wearing a magenta scarf and dark sweater.
A Cairo court has convicted Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, of running an unlicensed website and ordered the outlet shut down.

Every day, OkayAfrica shares a roundup of news we’re following but haven’t published as full articles. These short updates cover what’s happening across the continent — in culture, politics, and beyond. For more stories like these, check out our News page for updates from across the regions.

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Egypt Convicts Mada Masr Editor Lina Attalah and Orders the Outlet Shut Down

Yesterday, Tuesday, October 27, a Cairo court convicted Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, of managing an unlicensed website. It gave her the maximum penalty: a fine of 3 million Egyptian pounds (about $54,000) and an order to close the site. Attalah was taken into custody inside the courthouse and released about seven hours later, after the outlet paid the fine. Her legal team says she was effectively ambushed. They say the judge appointed a defense lawyer for her before security personnel detained her in the courtroom. Mada Masr, Egypt's flagship independent news outlet, says it applied for a license three years ago and never got a reply. Attalah founded the outlet in 2013 after rising to prominence during the 2011 Arab Spring, and she has been arrested several times before. Global press freedom groups condemned the verdict. Reporters Without Borders called it "outrageous" and "shameful," Amnesty International called it "a crushing blow to press freedom," and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and 129 other organizations denounced the closure order.

A Crackdown Years in the Making

  • Attalah's lawyer, Hassan al-Azhari, says the team learned during the case that Attalah had also been sentenced in absentia in 2024 to a year in prison and a 20,000-pound fine. The defense appealed, and a new hearing is set for November 11.

  • PEN International says this is the sixth case against Mada Masr in six years and the first referred to trial. It reads that as a clear intent "to entirely shutter the independent media space."

  • Less than a month ago, security forces arrested all six members of the Matsadaash newsroom: Abdallah Qadry, Mohamed Ashraf Abu Emeira, Islam Barakat, Omar Helal, Mohamed Mahmoud, and Mohamed Adel. Egypt's Interior Ministry says they are suspected of preparing "fabricated news" and alleges the platform is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, a 98-year-old transnational Sunni Islamist socio-political movement whose Egyptian, Sudanese and Jordanian branches were classified as Specially Designated Global Terrorists by the U.S. earlier this year. The platform denies the link. Human Rights Watch said families and lawyers were denied contact with them and that their arrests may amount to enforced disappearance.

  • Hossam Bahgat of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights said the moves mean security agencies are going "from years of harassing independent media to wiping them out completely." He ties the crackdown to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's repeated claims since August of a conspiracy to destabilize Egypt.

  • Egypt is among the world's top jailers of journalists, with 25 behind bars, according to CPJ. The Matsadaash arrests, the Attalah conviction, and the summoning of journalist Rasha Azab all came within weeks of each other.

Our Take: Why This Matters Beyond Newsrooms

Mada Masr was widely seen as Egypt’s biggest independent news outlet. A court has now ordered it shut over a license the outlet says it applied for three years ago and never got a response to. Prosecuting an editor for how her outlet is registered, then arresting an entire newsroom of another outlet, tells every reporter in Egypt that the safest story is the one they never write.

That cost does not stay in newsrooms; readers pay for it, too. Independent reporters are often the only ones who will tell readers when prices are being hidden, when hospitals are failing, when public money goes missing, or when a prison or courtroom treats someone unfairly. When reporters fear prison, those stories go unwritten, and people make decisions about their families, savings, and votes with less accurate information. Officials who believe no one is watching have fewer reasons to fix problems. Even people who never read Mada Masr lose when that check on power disappears. 

OkayAfrica stands with press freedom and condemns Egypt’s attack on independent journalism.

Tanzania Announces First Natural Gas Discovery in a Decade at Mnazi Bay

Tanzania has announced a natural gas discovery of an estimated 223 billion cubic feet (6.3 billion cubic meters) in the Mnazi Bay area in the south of the country, its first such find in a decade. Energy Minister Juma Homera called it a "major milestone" for the country's small oil and gas sector at a ceremony at the Kasa-1X ST2 well, which is jointly owned by state-owned Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation and French oil firm Maurel & Prom. The well is expected to start production early next month and is meant to boost domestic supplies. Homera said the discovery helps ensure reliable, clean, and affordable energy as demand grows with industrial growth and other economic activity.

Gas Already Powers Much of Tanzania

  • Tanzania's existing natural gas reserves stand at 57.54 trillion cubic feet. Natural gas made up nearly 80% of its electricity generation sources in 2024, according to government statistics.

  • The country has encouraged the use of compressed natural gas to power vehicles, with plants and filling stations set up mostly in Dar es Salaam. Some Tanzanians have converted their vehicles to a dual-fuel system, since locally available gas is cheaper than petrol.

  • Tanzania made its first gas discovery in 1974 on Songo Songo Island in the Lindi region, and a second in 1982 at Mnazi Bay in the neighboring Mtwara region. Commercialization began in 2004, and the largest single discovery, 2.7 trillion cubic feet, came in 2016.

In Brief: More Stories Today

South Sudan Mourns Independence Figure Joseph Lagu, Passes Away at 94

South Sudan is observing national mourning today, Wednesday, October 28, after the death of Joseph Lagu, 94, a key figure in the independence of the world's youngest country. He was a founding member of Anyanya in 1963, the first armed movement to fight the Sudanese government, and current President Salva Kiir served under his command. In 1972, Lagu led the negotiations that ended Sudan's first civil war, which killed about 500,000 people, and secured regional autonomy for South Sudan. Kiir has declared mourning until the burial, and the funeral date has not been announced.

U.S. Sanctions Rwanda's Defense Ministry Over Fighting in Eastern DR Congo

The U.S. imposed sanctions today, Wednesday, October 28, on Rwanda's ministry of defense, saying it directed the Rwanda Defense Force to deploy thousands of troops across North and South Kivu, where they operated alongside rebels and supplied them with military equipment. The U.S. also sanctioned Zigama Credit and Savings Society, which the Treasury says acted for Rwanda's security services, facilitated weapons payments, and helped move gold from rebel-held territory to Rwanda. Rwanda denies backing the Refoundation of the Nation rebels, formerly AFC-M23, and says unmet commitments on the FDLR are the problem, while DR Congo welcomed the sanctions.

Putin Hosts Leaders of Mozambique, Libya, and Equatorial Guinea in Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Mozambique's Daniel Chapo, Libya's representatives, and Equatorial Guinea's Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo yesterday, Tuesday, October 27, on the sidelines of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum in Moscow. Putin thanked Mozambique for supporting Russian initiatives at the United Nations and said he wants joint initiatives with Libya, where bilateral trade continues to grow. Some Western observers warn of the risks of Russia's growing influence in Libya. The forum includes 20 gas-producing nations that hold over 70% of proven gas reserves.

U.S. Development Finance Agency's Capacity Grows to $205 Billion, With Africa a Key Target

The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) can now support up to $205 billion in investments worldwide, up from $60 billion, after Congress renewed its mandate through 2031 and strengthened its equity powers. The figure is a global ceiling, not an allocation for Africa, where DFC already has more than $14 billion committed, including over $3 billion tied to critical minerals. The agency is preparing more direct-equity investments in Africa, including a proposed 20% stake in Mozambique's Balama graphite mine, and expects to deploy $25 billion to $35 billion globally next year. Projects must still pass commercial, environmental, and political reviews before approval.

Ghanaian Twins and U.S. Woman Plead Guilty in Romance Scam That Cost Victims $9 Million

Twin brothers Jamal and Kamal Abubakari, 22, of Ghana and Amanda Joy Opoku-Boachie, 53, of Hawaii pleaded guilty to taking part in a network that defrauded elderly people in the U.S. and Europe through fake dating and social media identities. Victims lost $9 million between July 2024 and April 2026, and the three face up to 20 years in prison, with sentencing next year. They agreed to forfeit seized jewelry, including luxury watches and rings. U.S. authorities have stepped up their crackdown on such networks, and FBI Director Kash Patel said earlier this month the agency made hundreds of arrests after dismantling a scam center in Ghana.

Business Group Warns South Africa Could Return to FATF Grey List

Business Leadership South Africa says the country faces "significant risk" of returning to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list barely a year after its removal, according to its latest reform tracker. FATF is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 by the G7 in Paris to set global standards for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. South Africa's anti-corruption reforms are stuck at 51.2, unchanged from last quarter, well below the overall reform score of 72.5, which is the tracker's highest since March 2024. A new FATF evaluation will have a peer review in early 2027, and weaknesses in investigating and prosecuting organized crime could count against South Africa. A return to the list would raise compliance costs and could make cross-border payments and trade finance slower and more expensive.

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