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Africa Horn

Chad cuts Sudan ties after attack

2006-04-14

Chad's government has announced it has cut off diplomatic relations with Sudan after repelling a rebel attack on the capital, N'Djamena on Thursday. Sudan denies Chad's accusations that it backs the United Force for Change rebels, who were beaten back by troops after launching a daring dawn raid. On Friday, Chad paraded 160 captives, said to be rebels, in a public square while crowds and soldiers looked on. A minister said 300 prisoners had been captured and some 400 killed in total. They ran pictures yesterday of government troops dumpng dead rebels on the capital steps. Looks like they did win this one, so far "We have taken the decision to break our diplomatic relations with Sudan today and to proceed to close our frontiers," Chadian President Idriss Deby told a rally in N'Djamena. Sudan has served as a base for Chadian rebels. The BBC's Stephanie Hancock says the parading of prisoners was a carefully choreographed affair, sending a clear message that the rebels had been subdued and the capital was under control. The United Nations Security Council has condemned Thursday's attack, which was aimed at toppling President Deby. Earlier on Friday, Chadian Defence Minister Bichara Issa Djadallah said 150 people on the rebel side had been killed in fighting in the town of Adre, near the Sudanese border. "All attackers withdrew into Sudan," the minister said in an interview with Radio France Internationale. The rebels have vowed to overthrow Mr Deby before the polls, which the opposition are boycotting. The rebels accuse Mr Deby of being a dictator and say they want to organise a national forum that will lead to a transitional government and then democratic elections. A spokesman for the rebels told the BBC they had not been defeated and would attack N'Djamena again. "We'll be back" Chad accuses Sudan of supporting and arming the attackers while Sudan says Chad backs rebels in its Darfur region. The UN Security Council urged both nations to resolve differences through talks and not support hostile actions. The council "condemned any attempt to seize power by force... and calls on the rebels to put an end to violence and to participate in the democratic process". UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said he was "greatly troubled by the worsening security situation in Chad". "And we shall look at it most carefully first thing Monday morning. It's a holiday weekend, you know." Gunfire and shelling in the capital began at dawn on Thursday, and fighting in the city continued for more than two hours. Mr Deby said a small rebel column attempted to enter the capital but was "completely destroyed". Wonder if those French troops have any recon drones and passed the info to Chad? He said elections scheduled for early next month would go ahead as planned. Jean-Marc de la Sabliere, the UN envoy from France, which has some 1,350 troops in its former colony, said the rebels came from Sudan's Darfur region. Chad, which is rich in oil, has been hit by the conflict in Darfur, with hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing across the border.

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Africa Horn

Chad confronts rebels in capital

2006-04-13

Heavy fighting has subsided in Chad's capital after breaking out at dawn, between government troops and rebels trying to overthrow the president. A BBC correspondent in N'Djamena said gunfire and shelling began at dawn and lasted for some two hours. Speaking on the radio, President Idriss Deby said government forces had destroyed a small rebel column that attempted to enter the capital. He said that government troops were in "complete control" of N'Djamena. Only sporadic gunfire could be heard around the capital following his announcement. Speaking from near the parliament in the north-east of the city, correspondent Stephanie Hancock told the BBC News website that the area was in the hands of government forces and they had piled bodies of what they said were rebels on the front steps of the National Assembly. Many more had been rounded up and were being guarded by troops. Mr Deby, who said he was talking from the presidential palace in the capital, said elections scheduled for early next month would go ahead as planned. Foreigners have been rushing to muster points in the city from where they can be evacuated. French troops have also taken up positions in the capital. The United Force for Change rebels have vowed to overthrow Mr Deby before the polls, which the opposition are boycotting. A rebel spokesman said rebel forces were moving into the capital from the east, having made rapid advances in recent days, and would overthrow the president "by nightfall". The UN refugee agency's Myriam Houtart in the city told the BBC she believed that fighting was moving towards the city centre where the presidential building is located. "We are hearing gunfire and mortar fire," she said. "We have helicopters flying over the city. They have progressed towards the centre of the city." She said a lot of people were staying in their houses. An army source told AFP news agency that fighting broke out when troops attacked rebel positions near the city. A day earlier, the rebels were said to have moved from the east of the country to within 100km (65 miles) of the capital. Earlier this week they were fighting in Mongo - some 400km east of the capital. Security in the capital was tightened overnight, with armoured vehicles and a heavy army presence on the streets. On Wednesday, people had been queuing at banks to withdraw money and there were reports that many expatriates were preparing for a speedy exit. The rebels accuse Mr Deby of being a dictator and say they want to organise a national forum that will lead to a transitional government and on to democratic elections. With them in charge of counting the votes Chad, which is rich in oil, has been hit by the conflict in the neighbouring Sudanese western Darfur region, with hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing across the border. Mr Deby's government blames Sudan for inspiring the uprising - an accusation Sudan denies. Sudan accuses Mr Deby of supporting the Sudanese rebels in Darfur who belong to his ethnic group. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said the situation was undermining efforts to stabilise the situation in Darfur. Chad's former colonial power, France, flew in an extra 150 troops from Gabon on Wednesday to supplement the 1,200 troops already in the country. The French Defence Ministry have acknowledged that one of its mirage jets in Chad fired warning shots towards rebels advancing on N'Djamena from the east on Wednesday.

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