Chad on edge as rebels threaten to advance on capital
N’DJAMENA (Reuters) – Chad’s new military leaders received backing from France on Thursday despite protestations from the political opposition and some army officers as rebels geared up to resume an offensive on the capital.
A military council led by Gen. Mahamat Idriss Deby took over power after Deby’s father, Chad’s long-ruling leader Idriss Deby, was killed in battle with the Libya-based rebels on Monday.
Dignitaries from across the region were due to start arriving on Thursday for Deby’s funeral ceremony set for Friday, after the rebels said they had ended a brief ceasefire at midnight and were about 200-300 km. from the capital.
Gen. Deby, 37, has said the army will hold democratic elections in 18 months, but opposition leaders have condemned his takeover as a coup d’etat and an army general said many
officers were opposed to the transition plan.
France, Chad’s former colonial ruler, defended the military takeover on Thursday, saying it was necessary for security amid “exceptional
French Foreign Minister JeanYves Le Drian said the military was justified in its actions as the speaker of parliament had declined to take charge.
“Logically, it should be (speaker Haroun) Kabadi... but he refused because of the exceptional security reasons that were needed to ensure the stability of this country,” Le Drian told France 2 television.
Deby, although criticized by human rights groups for his repressive rule over three decades, was a lynchpin in France’s security strategy in Africa.
About 5,100 French troops are based across the region as part of international operations to fight Islamist terrorists, and France has its main base in circumstances.”
N’Djamena.
Dissent within the military has raised concerns about stability in Chad.
“Kaka (Mahamat Deby) only has partial support of the army. He is young and, unlike his father, has never been a rebel,” said Jerome Tubiana, an analyst specializing on Chad.
“Within the army, there’s indeed (at least) two groups.”
Deby, 68, was killed on Monday on the frontline against fighters of the Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT), a group formed by dissident army officers in 2016 which says it is pro-democracy.
The group warned foreign leaders invited to Deby’s funeral on Friday, which include French President Emmanuel Macron, not to attend for their security.