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Today in Africa — September 23, 2026: Tigray Forces Shatter Ethiopia's Peace Deal, South Africa's Deputy Police Chief Faces Rape Charges

OkayAfrica has scoured the Internet for today’s major news stories, so you don't have to. On Sept. 23, coverage includes: growing fears of a wider regional war after Tigrayan forces seize federal airports; South Africa's top brass condemning the top cop accused of a woman’s rape and the grooming of a teenage girl; and more.

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Lihle Z. Mtshali Today in Africa & Newsletters Editor
Two uniformed Ethiopian forces members stand near a relief cargo plane at Mekelle airport.
Ethiopian special forces at Mekelle Airport in Tigray, Mekelle, on March 9, 2021. Mekelle Airport is one of the federally controlled airports that Tigrayan forces seized today.

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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Tigray Forces Launch Offensive Against Ethiopia's Federal Government, Shattering 2022 Peace Deal

Tigrayan forces launched a major offensive against Ethiopia's federal government today, Wednesday, September 23, seizing federally controlled airports in Tigray and shattering the four-year-old Pretoria Agreement that ended the devastating 2020-2022 civil war. Tigray's leaders called it a "defensive war" against federal aggression, while Abiy adviser and former TPLF official Getachew Reda accused the group of launching an "all-out offensive" in the neighboring regions of Afar and Amhara. Ethiopian Airlines suspended flights to Mekelle, Axum, and Shire, and the escalation comes just three days after the TPLF joined six other armed groups in a new alliance aimed at overthrowing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali.

Fears of a Wider Regional War

  • Tigrayan forces are fighting alongside a local armed group in Afar and the Fano militia in Amhara, according to multiple sources with government, diplomatic, humanitarian, and TPLF ties.

  • Federal forces reportedly fired heavy weapons from a camp near Lalibela, a UNESCO-listed town famous for its ancient rock-hewn churches, targeting advancing Fano fighters roughly 30 miles away.

  • Around 750,000 Tigrayans remain internally displaced from the earlier war, per the UN refugee agency, with the region now also facing El Niño-linked drought.

  • The U.S. condemned a recent drone strike on a Catholic Relief Services aid convoy in Tigray that destroyed a food truck, without assigning blame.

  • Analyst Edward Bach of Verisk Maplecroft said Ethiopia's federal government holds a stronger tactical position than in 2020, thanks to expanded drone stockpiles and divisions within the TPLF.

South Africa's Deputy Police Commissioner Charged With Rape, Child Grooming

Shadrack Sibiya, South Africa's suspended deputy national police commissioner, has been charged with rape, human trafficking, and grooming a child after being arrested on Monday at a strip club, adding fresh scandal to a police force already under scrutiny. Prosecutors allege Sibiya raped an 18-year-old woman at a Sandton hotel in May while she was intoxicated, and separately groomed a 16-year-old girl over WhatsApp between July 20 and August 3, including sending her images of herself she hadn't sent him. He was denied bail and taken to prison in Pretoria ahead of a bail hearing set for September 29, after prosecutors argued he posed an escape risk.

A Force Under Scrutiny

  • Sibiya was already suspended from his post over allegations he improperly moved 121 political killings investigations from KwaZulu-Natal to national headquarters, and separately denied accepting 20 impalas as a gift from businessman Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala, who later received a 360 million rand police contract.

  • Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane says officers "cannot themselves be implicated in conduct that undermines" their duty to protect women and children.

  • Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia says the alleged conduct is "strongly condemned" and must be investigated "without fear or favor."

  • The arrest comes as South Africa reels from the discovery of nine women's bodies across Ekurhuleni, and one in Soweto, and amid the ongoing Madlanga Commission inquiry into police corruption and criminality.

  • Sibiya did not enter a plea at the hearing, with his lawyer requesting more time to consult with him.

ICC Convicts Ex-Seleka Militia Leader of Crimes Against Humanity

Judges at the International Criminal Court convicted Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, a former Séléka militia leader from the Central African Republic, of four counts of crimes against humanity, including torture and persecution, today, Wednesday, September 23. Presiding judge Miatta Maria Samba says Said oversaw the beating and torture of suspected supporters of then-President François Bozizé at a prison in Bangui; Said, who denied all charges, showed no reaction as the verdict was read, and a separate hearing will determine his sentence.

Context on the Case

  • Judges dismissed several war crimes charges after finding the armed conflict had already ended when the alleged crimes occurred.

  • Seleka, a predominantly Muslim rebel coalition, seized power in 2013 during the Central African Republic's long civil war, ousting Bozizé and sparking the rise of rival "anti-Balaka" Christian militias that formed to fight the mostly Muslim Séléka rebel coalition.

  • The ICC has investigated violence in the Central African Republic since 2014 and has previously convicted two anti-Balaka leaders — Said is the first Séléka member to be convicted.

In Brief: More Stories Today

South African Man Wrongly Accused of Being 'Kempton Park Serial Killer' Beaten to Death

A man was fatally beaten by a mob in South Africa’s Mpumalanga Province after his family says he was accused of being linked to the Ekurhuleni killings simply because he'd recently moved from Kempton Park, where most of the killings have happened. Police confirmed Vusimuzi Radebe’s death as an act of vigilantism but say the motive remains unconfirmed, and a manhunt is underway for those responsible; his family described him as "an only child" and "a quiet child" who "wasn't a danger to the community."

11 Killed in South African Mass Shooting, Including Pregnant Woman

Three gunmen opened fire on a house party in KwaMakhutha township near Durban last night, Tuesday, September 22, killing at least 11 people, including a pregnant woman, and wounding three others. Police haven't confirmed a motive but say some victims were known to authorities through separate criminal investigations, and haven't ruled out a feud between rival groups; no arrests have been made, though the acting national police commissioner ordered a 72-hour operation to track down the gunmen.

South Sudan's Kiir Dissolves Transitional Government Ahead of December Election

South Sudan President Salva Kiir dissolved the transitional government on Monday, removing all five vice presidents and disbanding parliament and national and state governments, three months before the country's first election since independence in 2011. Kiir will remain in office with full powers until an elected president is sworn in, while opposition leader Riek Machar remains under house arrest on treason charges and no prominent challenger has emerged to face Kiir in the December vote.

UK Reviews Chagos Islands Deal After Trump Calls It "Terrible"

The UK is reviewing its deal to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after U.S. President Donald Trump called the agreement "terrible" at the UN General Assembly, Defense Secretary Wes Streeting confirmed. The original deal would see Britain cede the islands while paying about £101 million ($136 million) a year to lease back the Diego Garcia military base, but Streeting says no money would be handed over "at this stage" while officials work to find terms Trump's administration can support.

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