Chadian President Idriss Déby is dead

AFP

Just re-elected as head of Chad, this staunch ally of France in the Sahel ruled his country with an iron fist for 30 years.

Chadian President Idriss Déby Itno, died Tuesday from injuries sustained while commanding his army in fighting against rebels in the north over the weekend. Aged 68, he had been Chad's all-powerful head of state since his coup on December 2, 1990, which he instigated with French help. A military man at heart, "IDI", who never shied away from donning his fatigues, died on the front line, facing rebels who had been challenging his rule for years.

"The President of the Republic, Head of State, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Idriss Déby Itno, has just breathed his last while defending territorial integrity on the battlefield. It is with deep bitterness that we announce to the Chadian people the death this Tuesday, April 20, 2021, of the Marshal of Chad," announced army spokesman General Azem Bermandoa Agouna, in a statement read on TV Chad.

Ministers and high-ranking officers had said Monday that the head of state had visited the frontline between his army and a column of rebels who had launched an offensive from rear bases in Libya on election day, April 11.

Idriss Déby, 68, a career military officer who seized power in 1990 in a coup and was promoted to the rank of Field Marshal last August, was re-elected for a six-year term with 79.32% of the votes cast, according to provisional results released Monday evening by the national electoral body.

France's main support in the Sahel

Almost a pariah a decade ago, the president was one of France's main supporters in the Sahel and in the Barkhane operation, thanks to this army considered one of the best on the continent. The headquarters of the French military operation was in N'Djamena.

The president marshal, who was one of the first to warn of the serious consequences of the fall of the Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, was listened to on all security issues. He plays it perfectly," a former diplomat told Le Figaro a few days ago. He was thus able to put a stop to all international criticism of his regime and even obtain loans from major international institutions that would otherwise have been refused or subject to very strict conditions. But this does nothing to calm internal divisions.

Source: AFP