The Ethiopian government says that Tigrayan attacks have intensified on Thursday.

Its latest statement on the renewed fighting in the civil war comes after Tigrayan forces accused the government of launching large-scale offensives in the region.

The government called the Tigray People's Liberation Front a "terrorist group" and said "the duty of halting [it] from its destructive activities has fallen on the government and people of Ethiopia":

The statement also said the TPLF was punishing the "people of Tigray through starvation" by launching attacks during the farming season.

Ethiopia's government has been accused of imposing an aid blockade on the region which impeded crucial deliveries - something it has blamed on the fighting.

Nearly five million people are said to need food aid in Tigray, with hundreds of thousands enduring "famine-like" conditions.

Read more: Why fighting has resumed in Tigray

Lebo Diseko
BBC News, Johannesburg

Image source, Getty Images

South Africa’s health minister has warned that it is not up to ordinary citizens to enforce the country's immigration law.

Joe Phaahla was visiting a hospital in Pretoria where protesters from the controversial group Operation Dudula have been trying to stop foreign nationals from getting treatment.

Operation Dudula has been accused of xenophobia, but its members say foreign nationals are putting a strain on the country's health system.

Mr Phaahla told journalists that a growing number of people from neighbouring countries - and as far away as India - were coming to South Africa for treatment.

And he said if that continued, South Africa would reach a stage where it could not cope.

But he stressed that the constitution was clear about the right of anyone who lived in the country to access healthcare.

Protesters have continued to demand, in defiance of a court order, that people prove their nationality before entering the hospital.

It’s alleged people with darker skin tones have been targeted and forced to prove they can speak a local language.

Earlier on Thursday, violence broke out between Operation Dudula members and counter-protesters outside the hospital.

Police fired rubber bullets to disperse the two groups.

The government does not record the number of foreign nationals using health facilities. But there is increasing concern in South Africa about the impact of undocumented immigrants on the country’s health system.

The return of fighting in Ethiopia's civil war is "catastrophic for the people of Ethiopia", the UK's Africa Minister Vicky Ford has said, external.

In the latest development, Tigrayan forces in Ethiopia have accused the government and its allies from neighbouring Eritrea of launching large scale offensives in the north-west of the region.

The federal government has not commented.

The renewed conflict risks "deepening of the already dire humanitarian situation. Twenty-two months since fighting first began, it is clear that there is no military solution," Ms Ford added.

There had been some hope that a five-month truce would have opened the way for peace negotiations.

The British minister said Tigrayans should stop fighting in the neighbouring Amhara region, Eritrean forces should leave Tigray and the federal government should "urgently restore services to Tigray".

Read more on this story:

• Ethiopia civil war: Why fighting has resumed in Tigray and Amhara

Jonathan Paye-Layleh
BBC News, Monrovia

Liberians have been eulogising acclaimed historian and writer Joseph Saye Guannu who died on Monday aged 81.

He has been hailed for living a simple, exemplary lifestyle.

Former Defence Minister Brownie Samukai wrote on Facebook that Dr Guannu was the finest of his generation.

Mr Samukai said the late author "will be remembered as the remarkable professor... who wrote actual facts of Liberian history... and empirically challenged and corrected several myths".

Veteran politician Togba-Nah Tipoteh said Dr Guannu’s work “remains the sharing of the truth about the people who occupy the public space called Liberia”.

He added that “the truth from the knowledge of Prof Dr Guannu became most important because working with this truth is the best way to solve Liberia's problems”.

Dr Guannu was a former ambassador to the US.

He was the author of many history books including: The Liberian History Before and up to 1847, The Inaugural Addresses of Liberian Presidents, Introduction to the Liberian government, and The Perennial Problems of Liberian History.

He was born in the north-eastern city of Sanniquellie in the mountainous county of Nimba. As a young boy, he witnessed the historic 1959 meeting of the presidents of Liberia, Guinea and Ghana to begin discussions on the formation of the then Organisation of African Unity, now African Union.

The skeleton of a long-necked Mbiresaurus raathi is believed to be more than 230 million years old.

Richard Kagoe
BBC News, Nairobi

The lawyers for the chairperson of Kenya's electoral commission have mounted a spirited defence at the Supreme Court hearing on the challenges to the presidential election result.

Chairperson Wafula Chebukati had been accused of violating the constitution and electoral law during the declaration of the election results.

Appearing before a seven-judge bench, lawyers have told the court that Mr Chebukati was mandated by law to announce the results.

They described the petition challenging Mr Chebukati as a witch hunt and full of speculation because no evidence had been presented to support the allegations.

While admitting that there were a few errors, the electoral commission lawyers insist that the election was conducted according to the law and there were no sufficient grounds to warrant a nullification of the results.

They want the petition dismissed.

Basketball can overcome off-court problems that have plagued the game to supplant football as the number one sport in Nigeria, according to the vice president of NBA Africa.

Shingai Nyoka
BBC News, Harare

A rare one-metre-long dinosaur near-complete skeleton unearthed in northern Zimbabwe has been confirmed as the oldest dinosaur find in Africa.

The research published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, says that the plant-eating, two-legged creature was alive around 230 million years ago, dating from what's known as the Triassic early dinosaur age.

It was named Mbiresaurus Raathi after the fossil-rich Mbire district where it was found. The dinosaur was an early ancestor of the sauropods – the better-known large, long-necked four-legged dinosaurs.

It was a rare find, according to Darlington Munyikwa, the deputy director of National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe.

He told the BBC that fossils from the Triassic age have been unearthed in South America, India and now Zimbabwe.

It is expected to shed more light on the evolution and migration of early dinosaurs, when the world was one super continent, he added.

Mr Munyikwa was part of an International team of palaeontologists led by the US Virginia Tech University and Christopher Griffin who made the discovery.

Research to confirm the findings has been ongoing since 2017. Zimbabwe has been aware of other fossils in the area since 1982.

Mr Munyikwa said there were new and more sites that needed further exploration in the area subject to funding availability.

The near-complete skeleton of the Mbiresaurus is stored in a room in a museum in Zimbabwe's southern city of Bulawayo.

Vumani Mkhize
BBC Africa Business, South Africa

Image source, Getty Images

In a major victory for environmentalists and coastal communities, a South African court has revoked oil giant Shell’s permit to explore for off-shore oil and gas in an ecologically sensitive area.

Activists have long argued that exploration in the Wild Coast area - a 250km (155miles) stretch of untouched shoreline will harm marine life.

The court set aside a 2014 decision by the government to grant Shell exploration rights in the area. It also set aside a 2021 renewal of the rights.

Shell will no longer be able to conduct controversial seismic surveys of the ocean, which environmentalists argued was detrimental to marine life and ecology. Shell still has leave to appeal.

Coastal communities have campaigned for sustainable eco-tourism of the Wild Coast instead of drilling for oil and gas.

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta has made his first appearance mixing with members of the public since the 9 August elections.

He has kept a low profile since the candidate he supported - Raila Odinga - lost the presidential vote to William Ruto. Mr Odinga is now challenging the result in court.

Mr Kenyatta was seen on a visit to the coastal city of Mombasa two days after the county elected a new governor, who is from the Azimio coalition that the president backed.

He appeared relaxed and had less than his usual security presence.

He came out of a restaurant and shook hands with the public as he walked on the streets alongside the outgoing and incoming governors.

President Kenyatta has never publicly congratulated his deputy, Mr Ruto, for his election win.,,

Kalkidan Yibeltal
BBC News, Addis Ababa

Image source, AFP

Forces in the Tigray region of Ethiopia have accused the government and its allies from neighbouring Eritrea of launching "massive offensives" in the north-west of the region.

A day earlier, the Ethiopian government said the Tigrayans were expanding the fighting along the country’s borders with Sudan.

There have been international calls for an end to the renewed violence.

Fighting in Ethiopia has spread to several fronts since a five-month humanitarian ceasefire was shattered a week ago.

A top official for the Tigrayan forces said on Twitter that new offensives have been launched against them from four different directions.

It's not possible to verify these claims and the government in Addis Ababa has not commented.

There's growing alarm at the resumption of violence - the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington was "deeply concerned".

Both sides say they would welcome a peaceful resolution to Ethiopia's civil war but that hasn't stopped the guns from firing.

And the UN says children are among the victims - when villages were shelled in Afar, Tigray’s eastern neighbour.

Read more:

• Ethiopia civil war: Why fighting has resumed in Tigray and Amhara

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

At least three people were killed and seven others wounded when mortar bombs fired at areas near the Somali presidential palace reportedly hit residential homes in the capital Mogadishu.

Privately-owned Radio Risala reported that at least three mortars were fired on Bondhere and Hamarweyne districts after Thursday's morning prayers.

According to the radio, one of the mortars killed three and wounded three others in Casa-Italia neighbourhood in the city.

The radio said another mortar that also hit a residential home wounded four civilians while a third unexploded mortar landed near a monument in the city.

No group has claimed responsibility but al-Shabab militants have in the past shelled areas in the city near the presidential palace.

Rhoda Odhiambo
BBC West Africa correspondent, Lagos

Image source, Getty Images

The Dubai-based airline Emirates will not be flying to and from Nigeria for the next 10 days.

Its inability to repatriate money it was owed by the Nigerian authorities in US dollars is behind the suspension.

The last Emirates flight left Lagos at 20:00 local time on Wednesday. The airline says affected passengers can make alternative travel arrangements or cancel their plans.

Before the suspension, the airline had reduced its flights in Nigeria from 11 to seven per week.

It had earlier indicated it would stop flights from 1 September “to limit further losses and impact on our operation cost”.

It says the government owes them $85m ($73m) it made from ticket sales.

Flights will resume on 11 September following a step by the Nigerian authorities to release some of the money owed.

Last week, the Central Bank of Nigeria paid out $265m to airlines operating in the country to prevent a crisis in the aviation sector - it is not clear how much of that went to Emirates.

The shortage of US dollars is making it difficult for the bank to settle the debt.

British Airways has also reduced its flights over a failure to recover funds.

America’s Delta Airlines has indicated that it will suspend flights from New York to Lagos from 4 October due to low demand.

Image source, PA Wire

Prince Charles will on Friday name baby gorillas at Rwanda's annual conservation event Kwita Izina.

This is a flagship event for Rwanda’s tourism calendar which is derived from the traditional practice of naming babies in families.

The Prince will be among 20 high-profile personalities who will take part in the event.

He will however participate virtually.

The Prince was in Rwanda in June when he attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm).

He has a known passion for conservation.

This year marks the 18th edition of the Kwita Izina conservation event.

This is the first time the ceremony has taken place in person since 2019 following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Image source, Reuters

An oil tanker ran aground in Egypt’s Suez Canal on Wednesday night, briefly blocking a section of the canal and clogging maritime traffic.

Traffic resumed hours later after the Singapore-flagged vessel, Affinity V, was refloated by tug boats.

The incident was caused by a technical fault to the ship’s radar that resulted in loss of control, the Suez Canal Authority said.

The Suez Canal is a vital waterway that connects the Mediterranean and the Red Sea and sees over 10% of the world's maritime trade.

Last year, a huge container ship, the Ever Given, ran aground after becoming wedged diagonally on the channel.

For about a week, the stranded vessel became a source of worry and frustration for the global shipping industry before it was freed.

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

The International Monetary Fund has approved a $1.3bn (£1.1bn) loan to Zambia.

It said it would help Zambia restore economic stability and foster higher and more inclusive growth.

The fund said Zambia was dealing with years of economic mismanagement and its growth rates were too low to tackle poverty, inequality and malnutrition.

In return Zambia will have to tackle corruption, eliminate fuel subsidies and make agricultural subsidies more efficient.

Rhoda Odhiambo
BBC West Africa correspondent, Lagos

Image source, Getty Images

The government of Nigeria will from October ban foreign models and voice-over artists from advertisements.

Companies that fail to adhere to this new policy risk being fined up to $2,000 (£1,720).

The country’s advertising regulatory council says the move is aimed at ensuring that the local talent do not miss out on job opportunities.

The advertising council says for a long time now, Nigerian models have not been able to benefit from adverts being aired on different media channels.

Olalekan Fadolapo, the head of the council, says this must stop.

Several modelling agencies and production companies have at times been casting foreign models and voice-over artists, sometimes based on the demands of the client.

But critics have raised concerns about some of the requirements in this new policy.

The council says it is still working on it and will be made public before October, when the ban takes effect.

The one-month grace period is to allow companies with ongoing campaigns to finish their term to avoid making losses.

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That's all for now from the BBC Africa Live team, but we'll be back on Friday morning.

Until then you can find the latest updates on the BBC News website, or listen to our podcast Africa Today.

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And we leave you with this picture of Nigerian actress Glory Kevin at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on Wednesday.

Image source, AFP

The leaders of Nigeria and South Africa have paid tribute to Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union who died on Tuesday aged 91.

They both hailed Gorbachev's contribution to achieve peace in the world and efforts in trying to implement political reforms after the collapse of the communist state.

President Cyril Ramaphosa said the late leader had supported South Africa's struggle in the "critical period that led to the unbanning of the liberation movement and our transition to democracy."

“We are humbled by the regard he expressed for Nelson Mandela as an inspiration to him and as a model of leadership to the world," he added.

Nigeria's President Muhaamadu Buhari equally said that Gorbachev was a "courageous reformer" who played a huge role in promoting peace between the west and USSR.

"We cannot forget in a hurry how Gorbachev advocated for the destruction of nuclear weapons by both the former Soviet Union and the United States during his meeting with Ronald Reagan," he said.

"Although Gorbachev died without achieving his dream of a nuclear-free world, his genuine commitment to durable international peace and security would never be forgotten," Mr Buhari added.