Today in Africa —  September 12, 2025: No Visa Fees for Africans Traveling to Burkina Faso, South Sudan VP Suspended and Charged with Treason, Long-Range Drones Spotted at RSF Base in Sudan

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 on the continent — in culture, politics, and beyond. For more on stories like these, be sure to check out our News page, with stories from across the regions.

Burkina Faso Drops Visa Fees for African Travelers

Burkina Faso has scrapped visa fees for all African nationals in a move aimed at boosting regional integration and tourism, the country’s junta has announced. Security Minister Mahamadou Sana says citizens from across the continent will still need to apply online for approval, but no payments will be required. The decision, endorsed by military leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré, mirrors steps taken by Ghana, Rwanda, and Kenya to ease travel restrictions for Africans.

Authorities say the new policy underscores Burkina Faso’s Pan-Africanist vision while promoting its culture and visibility abroad. It comes as the country, along with Mali and Niger, withdraws from ECOWAS amid growing insecurity and strained ties with Western partners. While supporters hail Traoré’s stance, critics argue the regime remains authoritarian and unable to contain Islamist insurgencies.

South Sudan Suspends VP Machar After Treason Charges

South Sudan’s First Vice President Riek Machar has been charged with murder, treason, and crimes against humanity for his alleged role in attacks by the White Army militia in March, Justice Minister Joseph Geng said yesterday, Thursday, September 11. Hours later, President Salva Kiir suspended Machar from office and also removed Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol, who was charged alongside him. Machar, under house arrest since March, has been accused of commanding forces responsible for deadly raids in Nasir, though his SPLM-IO party dismissed the charges as fabricated to undermine the peace agreement and consolidate power.

The suspension deepens South Sudan’s political crisis, reigniting fears of renewed conflict between Kiir’s Dinka loyalists and Machar’s Nuer base, whose 2013–2018 civil war killed an estimated 400,000 people. International powers have urged Machar’s release, warning his detention could collapse the fragile unity government. Opposition leaders accuse Kiir’s camp of pushing “one-tribe rule,” while analysts say the president may be positioning ally Benjamin Bol Mel as Machar’s replacement. Rights groups have urged the court to ensure a fair trial, not a political show.

New Evidence of RSF Long-Range Drones Emerges as Army Retakes Bara

New evidence shows Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) may now possess long-range kamikaze drones capable of striking targets up to 2,000 km away, according to images analyzed by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab and defense experts. The drones, spotted in May at Nyala airport in Darfur, coincided with a wave of drone attacks on Port Sudan, raising fears that the RSF has significantly expanded its airstrike capabilities. Sudan’s army has targeted the airport repeatedly, while the origins of the drones remain unclear amid denials from China and the UAE over supplying the weapons.

The development comes as the Sudanese army and allied fighters recaptured Bara, a city long held by the RSF, signaling shifting control in the conflict now in its third year. Since losing territory in central and eastern Sudan, the RSF has leaned heavily on drone warfare, recently striking Khartoum in retaliation for alleged government attacks on civilians. Analysts warn that the appearance of long-range drones could alter the balance of power in a war that has already killed tens of thousands, displaced millions, and created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

WHO Warns Congo Ebola Outbreak Needs Urgent Support

The World Health Organization says the Democratic Republic of Congo’s latest Ebola outbreak could still be contained if urgent action is taken in the next two weeks, but warns delays could worsen the crisis. The health ministry has reported 32 suspected cases, 20 confirmed cases, and 16 deaths in Kasai province, where the country’s first outbreak in three years was declared. WHO officials say vaccines and treatments are on hand, with 400 doses already delivered to the epicenter in Bulape and a request planned for up to 50,000 more doses. But aid workers caution that cuts to international funding and limited facilities may undermine the response, raising concerns about further spread, including into neighboring Angola.

Nigerian Doctors Strike Over Pay and Welfare Demands

Resident doctors in Nigeria’s public hospitals have launched a five-day strike to protest unpaid allowances, salary arrears, and delays in disbursing the 2025 medical residency training fund. The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), which represents around 15,000 doctors, says the government has failed to address long-standing welfare concerns, despite repeated walkouts in recent years. Resident doctors, who play a central role in emergency care across the country, say chronic underfunding and poor working conditions have left the healthcare system struggling, while nurses staged their own strike in July over similar issues.

Eswatini Denies U.S. Plans to Deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia There

Eswatini’s government says it has no agreement with Washington to take Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man the U.S. recently named for deportation to the small southern African kingdom. Government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli told Reuters that Eswatini had not been informed and stressed that any proposal would need prior discussions between the two governments. The statement follows controversy after the U.S. designated Eswatini as Abrego’s new removal destination, despite his lack of ties to the country, and comes weeks after Eswatini quietly accepted five other U.S. deportees under a third-country deportation agreement — a deal now facing a court challenge by local rights activists.

Nigeria Jails Top Militant Leader for Terror Financing

A Nigerian court has sentenced Mahmud Muhammad Usman, leader of the al-Qaida-linked Ansaru group, to 15 years in prison for funding terror operations through illegal mining. Usman pleaded guilty to using proceeds from mining to purchase weapons, marking the first conviction out of 32 terrorism-related charges he faces. He was arrested last month alongside another senior militant, Mahmud al-Nigeri, during a multi-agency security operation. Authorities say Usman’s group carried out the 2022 Abuja prison attack that freed nearly 900 inmates and was linked to a 2013 assault on a uranium facility in Niger. He remains in state custody as his trial continues.

South African Court Dismisses Bester and Magudumana’s Bid to Halt Netflix Doc

The Gauteng High Court in South Africa’s administrative capital, Pretoria, has dismissed Thabo Bester and Dr. Nandipha Magudumana’s urgent attempts to stop Netflix from airing its new documentary based on them, Beauty and the Bester. Bester is a convicted murderer and rapist who faked his death to escape prison in 2022, and Magudumana, his partner, is accused of aiding his escape and is facing related charges. They were arrested in Tanzania in April 2023 after a drawn-out manhunt, triggered when a member of the public spotted them casually grocery shopping and snapped a picture of them, while Bester was still believed to have died in a prison fire the year before. Judge Sulet Potterill ruled their applications lacked urgency and substance, slamming their late filings and finding no proof the film would harm their right to a fair trial. Both argued the documentary would prejudice their cases and violate constitutional rights, but the judge said any harm could be addressed through defamation claims. The ruling came just 30 minutes before the film’s scheduled broadcast.

Insurgents Kill Seven in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado, Renewing Fears in Key Gas Hub

Seven people were killed in Mocímboa da Praia in Mozambique after insurgents carried out their first attack inside the district capital since Rwandan forces drove them out in 2021. Local officials confirmed the gunmen specifically targeted homes and called out victims by name, including two police officers. The violence has reignited fear in the town, a vital base for contractors linked to the stalled TotalEnergies gas project. Analysts warn the insurgency has intensified in Cabo Delgado over the past two months, with militants moving freely in large areas while government forces struggle with corruption and internal weaknesses.

UN Court Rejects Equatorial Guinea’s Bid to Reclaim Paris Mansion

The International Court of Justice has ruled in favor of France in its dispute with Equatorial Guinea over a luxury mansion in Paris seized during a corruption probe into Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue. Judges rejected Equatorial Guinea’s request for urgent measures to block France from selling the Avenue Foch property, saying the country failed to prove a plausible right to its return. The $100 million mansion, which includes a cinema, nightclub, and hammam, was confiscated in 2021 after Obiang was convicted of embezzling state funds. Equatorial Guinea argued the seizure violated its sovereignty and cited a U.N. anti-corruption convention, but France dismissed the case as an abuse of process.