Insurgency in Northern Chad
 | This article needs to be updated. (September 2021) |
| Insurgency in Northern Chad | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Map of Chad | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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JEM |
Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) Military Command Council for the Salvation of the Republic (CCMSR) Union of Forces of Resistance (UFR) Front de la Nation pour la Démocratie et la Justice (FNDJT) | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Idriss Déby †[2] Mahamat Déby Itno |
Mahamat Mahdi Ali Timane Erdimi | ||||||
In 2016, the Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) and the Military Command Council for the Salvation of the Republic (CCMSR) began a rebellion against the Chadian government. From their rear bases in southern Libya, FACT and CCMSR have launched offensives and raids into Northern Chad seeking to overthrow the government of former president Idriss Déby, who had been in power since a December 1990 coup. Other rebel groups are also involved in the insurgency, though to a lesser extent.
Background[edit]
Historically, Chad has suffered from a large number of civil wars, foreign conflicts, and coups since its independence from France in 1958.[3] Idriss Déby seized the Chadian presidency in a military coup in 1990. Since then, he enjoyed backing by both France[4] and China.[1] Déby's government was able to repeatedly defeat rebellions against his rule. Militant opposition groups were eventually driven from the country into exile.[4]
In 2014, the Second Libyan Civil War broke out. Several Chadian rebel groups consequently became mercaneries in service of various Libyan factions, receiving money and weaponry to prepare for their return to Chad.[4] Two new Chadian rebel groups, FACT and the CCMSR, were organized in southern Libya in 2016.[4][5] By 2017, the Chadian intelligence believed that rebels led by Timane Erdimi, a nephew and long-time opponent of Idriss Déby, were gathering weapons in southern Libya.[3]
2017[edit]
In July 2017, the CCMSR launched an offensive on Kouri Bougoudi seeking to seize control of the region and its lucrative mines. These assaults were ultimately repelled by the Chadian government although the CCMSR claimed to have launched a second attack in August 2017 which the Chadian government denied took place.[6] In September, Chad severed diplomatic relations with Qatar, accusing it of attempting to destabilize the country. Journalist Ben Taub suspected that this development was related to Qatar harboring Timane Erdimi who was still trying to overthrow Déby.[3]
By fall, fighting between government loyalists and insurgents grew more frequent along the Chadian-Libyan border. Déby responded by relocating hundreds of Chadian soldiers who had been sent to fight against Boko Haram to the north.[3]
2018[edit]
On 11 August 2018, CCMSR launched a major attack on the military outpost at Kouri Bougoudi in the Tibesti Mountains, later claiming to have killed 73 and captured 45 soldiers while suffering just 11 casualties (4 dead, 7 wounded). The Chadian government initially attempted to deny that the attack had taken place, and then downplayed its significance. While the CCMSR offered to release its prisoners in return for the release of imprisoned rebel leaders, the Chadian government refused to negotiate with "savage mercenaries, bandits [and] thugs",[7] and instead ordered local miners to abandon their camp at Kouri Bougoudi. The military subsequently retreated from the area on 22 August, leaving it to the CCMSR and illegal miners.[7][8] From then on, the Chadian Air Force launched several bombing raids in the region, targeting the Kouri Bougoudi mining camp and camel herds, killing several civilians and depriving locals of their livelihood. Meanwhile, the CCMSR continued its attacks against government positions, such as at Tarbou in Tibesti Region (21 September), and Miski in Borkou Region (24 October).[7] Some locals criticised the CCMSR of exploiting and worsening ethnic tensions in the Tibesti Mountains.[9]
2019[edit]
On 12 January 2019, a Sudanese armed group, the Justice and Equality Movement, crossed the border with Libya with dozens of vehicles and attacked CCSMR positions in Kouri Bougoudi.[10] According to JEM 67 of its fighters were killed while CCSMR reported three dead and 12 wounded.[11]
On 3–6 February, the French Air Force conducted airstrikes on UFR group which made intrusion into Chad. On 9 February 2019 Chadian army claimed to have captured 250 rebels including four leaders and destroyed forty vehicles.[12] French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian explained the operation by claiming that France had acted "to prevent a coup d'etat".[3]
2021[edit]
On 26 January 2021, 50 FNDJT rebels on 20 4x4 vehicles attacked Post 35 in Kouri Bougoudi 40 km south of border with Libya.[13]
2021 offensive[edit]
On 11 April 2021, the Chadian rebel group Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) launched an offensive in Tibesti Region in the north of the country following the 2021 Chadian presidential election.[14] President Idriss Déby was killed during the offensive on 20 April.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Olander, Eric Claude (21 April 2021). "What's at Stake for China in Chad Following the Unexpected Death of President Idriss Deby?". The China Africa Project. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
- ^ a b Chadian President Idriss Deby dies on frontline after 30 years in power
- ^ a b c d e Ben Taub (21 February 2019). "A Shadow Rebellion in Chad". The New Yorker. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ a b c d Emadeddin Badi (30 April 2021). "Déby's death: A microcosm of the flaws of French foreign policy in Libya". Atlantic Council. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ "Front for Alternation and Concord in Chad (FACT) - Chad | Terrorist Groups | TRAC". www.trackingterrorism.org. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
- ^ "Fighters from new rebel group attack Chad soldiers at Libya border". Yahoo News. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
- ^ a b c Andrew McGregor (12 November 2018). "War in the Tibesti Mountains – Libyan-Based Rebels Return to Chad". Aberfoyle International Security. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
- ^ "Fighters from new rebel group attack Chad soldiers at Libya border". Reuters. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ Chad: Defusing Tensions in the Sahel (2018), pp. 17–18.
- ^ AFP (14 January 2019). "Fighting over gold in Chad leaves dozens dead: sources". news24. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
- ^ Chad: Clashes between armed groups leave dozens dead in north Jan. 12, 15 January 2019
- ^ Rebel Incursion Exposes Chad's Weaknesses, 13 February 2019
- ^ In #Chad, FNDJT Rebels Claim Attack In Tibesti, 30 January 2021
- ^ Takadji, Edouard; Larson, Krista (18 April 2021). "Chad army claims it has stopped rebel drive toward capital". Washington Post. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
Works cited[edit]
- "Chad: Defusing Tensions in the Sahel". Crisis Group Report. Brussels: International Crisis Group (266). 5 December 2018.
