Richard Hamilton
BBC World Service newsroom

Image source, Getty Images

Ethiopia’s largest commercial bank is trying to retrieve millions of dollars withdrawn by its customers after an incident it described as a systems glitch.

More than $40m (£31m) were reportedly withdrawn from the state-owned Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, or transferred to other banks, when customers found out they could take out more cash than they had in their accounts.

It took several hours before the institution froze all its transactions.

A cyber attack has been ruled out as the cause of the glitch.

Witnesses told the BBC some students in university campuses, where most of the withdrawals were made, have since been detained.

University workers in Nigeria have begun a nationwide strike over "unfair treatment" and delays in the payment of their withheld salaries by the government.

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (Nasu) say that the government owes them four months' dues which were withheld during an extended strike in 2022.

They accuse the government of treating them unfairly by withholding their pay for the period while compensating academic personnel.

“As at today, all our workers in registry, bursary, works and maintenance, security, students’ affairs have withdrawn their services," SSANU President Mohammed Ibrahim said on Monday, external during an interview with privately owned Channels Television.

"Nothing moves within the administration of any public university in Nigeria and that will be the case for the next seven days until and unless the needful is done.”

Minister for Education Prof Tahir Mamman on Sunday told The Punch news website that he was unaware of the strike, external.

Moses Kollie Garzeawu
Journalist, Monrovia

Image source, EPA

Liberia's main opposition party, the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) has called President Joseph Boakai's programme to recover allegedly stolen state assets as “nonsense”.

The party's secretary-general Jefferson Koijee told journalists at the weekend that “none of our officials will submit to it”.

The CDC's George Weah lost his bid for a second presidential term last year.

Mr Boakai, who narrowly beat him, recently set up a task force to crack down on corruption and try and get back stolen funds.

The president ordered his team to identify and prosecute any senior officials involved. Current and past government officials are to be investigated.

He stated in his executive order that assets "wrongfully acquired at the expense of the government and people of Liberia" should be returned.

The CDC’s secretary-general alleged that the action was a violation of the constitution - though he did not state which part of the constitution - and it will be resisted by the party.

“Let me tell Mr Boakai that not even a chicken can submit to that reckless arrangement,” he concluded.

Mr Weah himself has not made any official statement on the process.

Image source, Kenyan presidency/X

Kenyan authorities have launched a crackdown on people who disrupted President William Ruto's political meetings in the west of the country at the weekend.

It followed two incidents where hecklers interrupted President Ruto’s rallies in Bomet and Kericho counties.

The president was in the Rift Valley region, his political stronghold, to launch several projects when his rallies were disrupted as political rivalries pitting local leaders played out.

The visibly irritated president said leaders fanning such chaos were affecting development projects in the area, terming the disruptions "foolish".

Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki on Monday directed police to immediately clamp down on the individuals behind the incidents.

The minister met local security chiefs and tasked them to "conclude investigations and apprehend the organisers, financiers and perpetrators of hooliganism".

Image source, Getty Images

A new suspect has been charged over the disappearance of a six-year-old South African girl last month.

The search for Joslin Smith has transfixed the country since she went missing near her home in Saldanha Bay, 110km (70 Miles) north-west of Cape Town, on 19 February.

A 32-year-old woman was on Monday charged with kidnapping and human trafficking in the Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court in the Western Cape province.

Joslin's mother Kelly Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and another suspect are also in custody and face kidnapping and trafficking charges.

Last week, the court freed a traditional healer due to a lack of evidence.

The new suspect will be up for a bail hearing on 25 March while Ms Smith and the other suspects will be back in court on 13 May.

Joslin is yet to be found and her whereabouts remain unknown.

Ms Smith had previously told local publication The Daily Voice that she had not given up hope of finding her daughter.

"My motherly instincts are telling me my daughter is still alive and in this area. We will find her, I will walk on foot to find her. I will look in every little shack, I'm going to do it by myself if I have to."

Joslin was left in the care of Ms Smith's boyfriend before she went missing. He has denied any involvement.

On average, a child goes missing every five hours in South Africa, but most are found.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Image source, Villa Somalia

Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki and visiting Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud held bilateral talks in Asmara, the Eritrea's capital.

During the "extensive" meeting on Sunday, the two leaders discussed regional issues, including Somalia's fight against militants, Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Meskel posted on X.

Talks on "important regional and global topics" also featured in their meeting, state-owned Somali National News Agency said, external, without providing more details.

This was President Mohamud’s second visit to Eritrea this year and the sixth since he came to power in May 2022, highlighting the strong relations between the two countries.

President Mohamud last visited Asmara in January amid tension with neighbouring Ethiopia over a port deal between Addis Ababa and the self-declared republic of Somaliland. The deal is contested by the Somali government.

A video shared on X, external (formerly Twitter) shows President Isaias and visiting President Mohamud strolling in the streets of Asmara, with residents cheering and taking pictures.

Eritrea has been training thousands of Somali soldiers to boost the Somali army as African Union troops are expected to withdraw from the Horn of Africa country at the end of this year.

BBC Newsday
World Service radio

Image source, Getty Images

The Gambian parliament will on Monday discuss whether to consider or throw out a bill that is seeking to reverse the ban on female genital mutilation (FGM).

If the legislators agree to consider it, the bill will be taken through a committee for further scrutiny.

The bill was introduced to parliament earlier this month by independent lawmaker Almammeh Gibba, who said it sought to "uphold religious purity and safeguard cultural norms and values".

Though FGM was criminalised in The Gambia in 2015, some seek to overturn the ban claiming that it violates religious freedom and is against the country's cultural practices.

But local and international human rights groups are urging lawmakers not to consider the bill, saying decriminalising FGM would endanger girls and women.

Over 73% of women and girls aged between 15 and 49 have undergone some form of FGM in The Gambia, which ranks among the top 10 African countries where FGM is prevalent, according to the UN.

The FGM rate drops to 46% among girls aged 14 and younger, according to Unicef.

Only two cases have been prosecuted and one conviction secured since The Gambia's FGM ban in 2015, human rights group Amnesty International says, external.

Kenyans are mourning veteran TV journalist Rita Tinina who was found dead at her home in the capital, Nairobi, on Sunday.

Her colleagues at NTV said she was expected to be on duty on Sunday but failed to show up, prompting a wellness check in her house where she was found unconscious.

A police report said no physical injuries were found on her body.

Tinina's sister told the police that the journalist was epileptic and had been suffering severe fever in the past week.

The long-serving TV journalist was known for her captivating news features, some of which left the country gripped.

President William Ruto eulogised her on X:

Kenyans on social media say they will miss her skilful scriptwriting and wordplay, while her colleagues have mourned her as a hardworking and reliable journalist.

"Her passing leaves a void in the industry, yet her legacy of storytelling and integrity will endure," opposition leader Raila Odinga posted on X.

Information Minister Eliud Owalo described Tinina's contributions to journalism as "invaluable".

Image source, Reuters

The European Union and Egypt have signed a €7.4bn ($8bn; £6.3bn) agreement aimed at boosting co-operation in trade and security, as well as trying to stem the flow of migrants into Europe.

The deal upgrades the EU's relationship with Egypt to a strategic partnership.

Grants, loans and other funds are due to be delivered over the next three years to support Egypt's faltering economy.

The country’s ongoing financial crisis has prompted an increasing number of Egyptians to try to cross to Europe, mainly via Libya, since the authorities have largely closed down the route from Egypt's north coast.

Egypt committed itself to curbing irregular migration to Europe.

"This shall encompass tackling the root-causes through development-focused solutions and improving regular migration routes," Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi said.

The EU has in the past signed similar deals with other African countries that act as popular routes for irregular migration to Europe, including Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania.

Nichola Mandil
BBC News, Juba

South Sudan’s government has ordered an indefinite closure of all schools because of a heatwave that could see temperatures rise to as high as 45C (113F).

Health and education authorities also urged parents to stop their children from playing outdoors for prolonged periods, saying the heatwave could last for two weeks.

"There are already cases of deaths related to excessive heat being reported," authorities said in a statement on Saturday.

They said that the country was experiencing “extended periods of high day and night-time temperatures that create cumulative physiological stress on the human body”.

Any school found open from Monday would have its registration withdrawn, the authorities warned.

Last week, at least 15 children were reported to have died of meningitis and other heat-related illnesses, according to the health ministry.

Nkechi Ogbonna
BBC News, Lagos

Image source, AFP

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu has ordered the army to arrest the killers of 16 soldiers who were murdered while on a peace mission in the south of the country last week.

The troops were responding to clashes between the Okuama and Okoloba communities in the oil-rich southern Delta state, when they were attacked by some community youth, the army said in a statement.

President Tinubu said a civilian was killed in what he termed “a direct attack on our nation”.

“The cowardly offenders responsible for this heinous crime will not go unpunished,” the president said.

“The defence headquarters and chief of defence staff have been granted full authority to bring to justice anybody found to have been responsible for this unconscionable crime against the Nigerian people,” he added.

Nigeria’s military said on Saturday that an investigation was under way and several arrests had been made in connection with the killing of a commanding officer, two majors, one captain and 12 soldiers during the attack.

Earlier on Sunday, reports said parts of the community were set ablaze by unknown groups while the villagers fled the area for fear of reprisal attacks by the country’s military.

Army spokesperson Brig GenTukur Gusau told the BBC he was unaware of the latest incident. However he emphasised that “the military must retrieve the arms and weapons taken from the slain soldiers”.

Rival communities have clashed repeatedly over land ownership and fishing rights in recent weeks, leaving several people dead, local media reported.

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