South Africa: Gunmen Attack Birthday Party, Kill Host, Eight Others

Published

3 years ago

January 30, 2023

Eric

Gunmen opened fire on a group of people celebrating a birthday at the weekend in a township in South Africa, killing eight and wounding three others, police said on Monday.

The birthday celebrant was among those gunned down in the mass shooting in the southern port city of Gqeberha, formerly Port Elizabeth.

“The owner of the house was celebrating his birthday when two unknown gunmen entered the yard” on Sunday evening “and started shooting at the guests,” police said in a statement.

The gunmen “randomly shot at guests,” police said, adding “eight people died while three others are still fighting for their lives in hospital. The homeowner is among the deceased”.

The motive of the attack is yet unknown.

Nomthetheleli Mene, the provincial police chief for the Eastern Cape province, condemned the killings as “a blatant disregard for human life”.

An investigation has been launched into the attack and police said a manhunt for the perpetrators was underway.

Shootings are common in South Africa, which has one of the world’s highest murder rates, fuelled by gang violence and alcohol.

South Africa last year saw string of shootings that killed nearly two dozen at separate bars in working class suburbs in Johannesburg and in the eastern city of Pietermaritzburg.

Police Minister Bheki Cele, the national police commissioner Fannie Masemola, and crime experts were scheduled to visit the scene of the attack later Monday morning.

AFP

Muammar Gaddafi’s Son Saif al-Islam Assassinated

Published

4 hours ago

February 4, 2026

Eric

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, has died at the age of 53, his political team announced on Tuesday.

The Head of the political team told Libyan News Agency that the young Gaddafi died near the country’s border with Algeria.

His sister confirmed the development, but did not specify the cause of death.

Born in 1972, the younger Gaddafi was once widely seen as his father’s heir apparent. The International Criminal Court had issued a warrant for his arrest, seeking to prosecute him for crimes against humanity related to his alleged role in crushing opposition demonstrations in 2011.

Africa

Nigerian Soldiers Still Trapped in Burkina Faso – Foreign Affairs Minister

Published

2 months ago

December 12, 2025

Eric

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, says the Nigerian soldiers who were on an aircraft that made a forced landing in Burkina Faso are still in trapped in that country.

Tuggar made this disclosure during a press briefing with his Beninese counterpart, Olushegun Bakari, on Thursday at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja.

The Confederation of Sahel States (AES), on Monday, accused an aircraft carrying 11 Nigerian soldiers of violating Burkinabe airspace.

AES is a breakaway West African regional union made up of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger Republic.

The Mali junta leader, Assimi Goita, described the landing as an unfriendly act carried out in defiance of international law.

The AES said it authorised its member states to neutralise any aircraft violating its airspace.

The development came at the same time Nigerian troops carried out air strikes in Benin to help foil a coup.

Commenting on the situation, the Nigerian Air Force, NAF, said the C-130 aircraft was on a ferry mission to Portugal.

Africa

Leader of Failed Benin Republic Coup Reportedly Seeks Refuge in Togo

Published

2 months ago

December 11, 2025

Eric

The leader of a failed coup in Benin Republic, Colonel Tigri Pascal, has reportedly sought refuge in neighbouring Togo.

Soldiers briefly took control of Benin’s State television station on Sunday morning and claimed they had deposed President Patrice Talon, though Benin’s armed forces, backed by Nigerian firepower and French intelligence and logistical support, thwarted the attempt.

The soldiers identified Colonel Pascal as the coup leader, while his whereabouts had previously been unknown.

However, a senior Benin government official told Reuters on Wednesday that the soldier is in Togo.

The government, however, called for Pascal’s immediate extradition.

Togo’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A Benin government statement on Monday said coup plotters attempted to seize Talon, and came close enough for the president to witness violent clashes first-hand.

The statement added that they also managed to kidnap two senior military officials who were released on Monday morning.

A Benin Republic government’s spokesperson, Wilfried Leandre Houngbedji, said on Sunday that 14 people had been arrested in connection with the coup attempt.

Reuters