Chad’s president, Idriss Deby, was killed while visiting troops on the front lines of a fight against northern rebels, the army said Tuesday, the day after Deby was declared the winner of a presidential election.
Deby’s son, Mahamat Kaka, was appointed interim president by a transitional council of military officers, spokesman Azem Bermendao Agouna said in a state television broadcast.
Deby, 68, came to power during a 1990 uprising and was one of Africa’s longest-reigning leaders. He and his army are seen as a reliable Western ally in a turbulent region ravaged by jihadists.
His campaign said on Monday that he joined forces on the front line after rebels stationed across the northern border in Libya advanced hundreds of miles south to the capital, N’Djamena. L1N2MC20E
The exact cause of death was not yet clear, but a European diplomatic source said he was murdered.
“There is an appeal for dialogue and peace among all Chadians in the country and abroad to further build Chad together,” said Bermendao, surrounded by several officers.
“The Transitional National Council assures the Chadian people that all measures have been taken to ensure peace, security and republican order,” he said.
Deby, whose opponents accused him of repressive rule, pushed through a new constitution in 2018 that would have allowed him to remain in power until 2033 – even when term limits were reinstated.
He took the title of “marshal” last year and said before last week’s election, “I know in advance that I will win, as I have for the past 30 years.”
He faced growing public discontent with his management of Chad’s oil wealth and the crackdown on opponents.
But in the election results announced Monday, Deby got 79% of the vote, giving him a sixth term in office. Several leading opposition figures have boycotted the poll.
Western countries have seen Deby as an ally in the fight against Islamic extremist groups, including Boko Haram in Lake Chad and groups associated with Al-Qaeda and Islamic State in the Sahel.
His death is a blow to France, which had based its Sahelian counterterrorism operations in the Chadian capital N’Djamena.
Chad announced in February the deployment of 1,200 troops to supplement 5,100 French soldiers in the area. France, the former colonial power, has yet to officially respond.
Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Principles of Trust.