President of Chad Idriss Deby on June 30, 2020 in Nouakchott. – Ludovic MARIN / POOL / AFP
Chadian President Idriss Déby Itno, in power for 30 years, died on Tuesday of injuries received while commanding his army in fighting against rebels in the north over the weekend, the spokesman said. on state television.
“The President of the Republic, Head of State, Supreme Head of the Armed Forces, Idriss Déby Itno, has just had his last breath in defending territorial integrity on the battlefield. It is with deep bitterness that we announce to the Chadian people the death on Tuesday April 20, 2021 of Marshal of Chad ”, announced the spokesman of the army, General Azem Bermandoa Agouna, in a press release read to the TV Chad antenna.
Sixth term
Idriss Déby, 68, a career soldier who seized power in 1990 after a coup d’état, promoted to the rank of Marshal last August, had just been re-elected for a 6-year term with 79.32% of the votes cast, according to provisional results announced Monday evening by the national electoral body.
Ministers and senior officers said on Monday that the head of state visited the front line between his army and a column of rebels who launched an offensive from rear bases in Libya on Saturday and Sunday. of the ballot on April 11. The rebels, whom the army had claimed to have defeated in the fighting, said in a statement that Idriss Deby had been wounded, but the information had not been confirmed from an official source.