Chad rebel group Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) said they were heading towards the country’s capital Ndjamena to allegedly “finish the job” following the death of president Idriss Deby on Tuesday.
Chad’s President, Idriss Deby, died from injuries sustained in clashes with rebels plunging a volatile region deeper into crisis. The transitional council Army led by Deby’s son, General Mahamat Kaka, immediately took charge of the country promising to organize elections within 18 months.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the rebels said they were now more determined to end the Deby rule because their country is not a monarchy.
Announcing Deby’s death on Tuesday, Army spokesman Azem Bermendao Agouna, praised Deby for the “spirit of sacrifice for which he fought during his life.”
The army also declared a 14-day period of national mourning, imposed an overnight curfew and closed both air and land borders until further notice.
A spokesman for the rebels on Monday said its fighters had “liberated” the province of Kanem, some 220 km (136 miles) from the capital N’Djamena, but the government denied this.
The rebels, who have been seeking to oust Deby since 2016, had claimed a number of victories in the past week and clashes were reported in the north of the country at the weekend. What followed were offensive and counter-claims between both government forces and rebels with each side claiming huge victories.
Chad’s long-serving President Idriss Deby had won a sixth term of office having led the country since 1990. Partial provisional results had given Deby a strong lead in the April 11 poll despite signs of growing discontent over his handling of the nation’s oil wealth.
He had successfully put down a string of rebellions since taking power, sometimes with military assistance from France. French air strikes helped the Chad army to repel a rebel incursion from Libya in February 2019.
