Chadian President Idris Debbie Itno, who has been in power for 30 years, succumbed to injuries sustained over the weekend while commanding his army in rebel fighting in southern Chad, his spokesman said. state television.
“The president of the republic, the head of state, the supreme leader of the armed forces, Idris Debbie Itno, breathed his last defending territorial integrity on the battlefield. “We are deeply saddened to announce to the people of Chad the death today, Tuesday, April 20, 2021, of General Chad,” said Armed Forces spokesman General Azem Bermandoa Aguna in a televised statement.
Debbie, 68, a military man who took power in 1990 after a coup and was promoted to general last August, had just been re-elected for a six-year term, winning 79.32% of the vote, according to provisional results announced yesterday. , Monday night, by the National Electoral Commission.
Ministers and high-ranking officials said yesterday that the head of state went to the front on Saturday and Sunday, where his army is facing rebels who had launched an attack on the day of the elections, on April 11, from bases in Libya.
The rebels, who the army said were victorious in the fighting, said in a statement that Debbie had been wounded, but the information had not been confirmed by an official source.
One of his sons, Mahamat Idris Debbie Atno, a 37-year-old general and commander of the Presidential Guard, is leading a military council tasked with replacing the now-defunct Chadian president Debbie Atno, the military said.
“A military council has been set up headed by his son, General Mahamat Idris Debi Itno,” said Armed Forces spokesman General Azem Bermandoa Aguna. “The council met immediately and approved the transition map,” he added.
