N’DJAMENA, Chad
Chad's military claimed
victory on Sunday in its weeks-long battle with northern rebels that led to the
death of President Idriss Deby on the battlefield.Rebels
from Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT), captured during the fighting
in the north of the country, are pictured at the army headquarters in
N'Djamena, Chad, May 9, 2021
However, the rebel group Front for Change and Concord in
Chad (FACT) said it was not aware of an end to the fighting. The group
"will comment when it has reliable and credible information," said
FACT spokesman Kingabe Ogouzeimi de Tapol.
The transitional military authorities have previously said they
have defeated the rebels only for clashes to continue.
The conflict and broader political instability are being
closely watched. Chad is a key power in central Africa and a longtime Western
ally against Islamist militants across the Sahel region.
Crowds in the capital N'Djamena cheered on Sunday as
soldiers returned from the front line in a column of tanks and armoured vehicles.
"The triumphant return of the army to the barracks
today heralds the end of operations and Chad's victory," the army's Chief
of the General Staff Abakar Abdelkerim Daoud told reporters.
At an army base in N'Djamena, dozens of captured rebels sat
in the dirt, on display for the assembled press.
FACT fighters crossed the border from Libya in April to
take a stand against Deby, whose 30-year rule they opposed. His subsequent
death while visiting troops plunged the country into crisis.
On Saturday, security forces fired tear gas to disperse a
protest against the ruling military council. The council, led by Deby's son
Mahamat Idriss Itno, seized power after Deby's death, promising to oversee an
18-month transition to elections.
Opposition politicians and civil society have denounced the
takeover as a coup and called for supporters to take to the streets. At least
five people were killed during a protest on April 27.
Opponents had planned a further protest on Sunday, but
postponed it out of fear the authorities planned to suppress it violently,
Mahamat Nour Ibedou, a prominent human rights activist, told Reuters.
The military council had given permission for a protest on
Sunday.
Former colonial ruler France, which has a military presence
in Chad and was a long-term backer of Deby, initially signaled its strong
support for the council but has since called for a civilian national unity
government.
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