Timane Erdimi is the leader of the Chadian rebel group Rally of Democratic Forces (Rassemblement des Forces pour le Changement, RFC) [1] which had 800 soldiers in early 2008. [2] He is a member of the ethnic group Zaghawa and nephew of the Chadian President Idriss Déby. [1]
An international arrest warrant was issued by Chad for Erdimi in 2007. He was among 12 people sentenced to death in absentia by a Chadian court on August 15, 2008. Responding to this sentence, Erdimi said that he had been unaware of the trial and remarked that it was his opponents in the government who "should be put on trial". [3]
Despite past differences, various rebel groups, including the RFC, agreed to unite as the Union of Resistance Forces on January 19, 2009. Erdimi said that this move would "allow us to better fight against the regime", and he spoke scornfully of the improvements Déby had made to his military, saying that Déby "should have bought robots for his new tanks and planes" because "he won't find anyone to drive and fly them when we attack." [4] The Union of Resistance Forces reportedly chose Erdimi by consensus to lead the new group on January 23. [5]
By 2017, Erdimi was living in exile in Qatar; from there, he was still commanding a loyal rebel force which was based in southern Libya. His continued activities resulted in Chad severing diplomatic relations with Qatar, arguing that the later state was supporting "terrorism". [6]
Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west. Due to its distance from the sea and its largely desert climate, the country is sometimes referred to as the "Dead Heart of Africa".
Hissène Habré, also spelled Hissen Habré, was a Chadian politician and convicted war criminal who served as the 5th president of Chad from 1982 until he was deposed in 1990.
Idriss Déby Itno was a Chadian politician and military officer who was the 6th president of Chad from 1991 until his death in 2021 during the Northern Chad offensive. His term of office of more than 30 years makes him Chad's longest-serving president.
Saleh Kebzabo is a Chadian politician. He is the President of the National Union for Democracy and Renewal (UNDR) and a Deputy in the National Assembly of Chad. He was designated Prime Minister by president Mahamat Déby on 12 October 2022.
The Chadian Civil War of 2005–2010 began on December 18, 2005. Since its independence from France in 1960, Chad has been swamped by civil wars between the Arab-Muslims of the north and the Sub-Saharan-Christians of the south. As a result, leadership and presidency in Chad drifted back and forth between the Christian southerners and Muslim northerners. When one side was in power, the other side usually started a revolutionary war to counter it.
Abdelwahid Aboud Mackaye is a Chadian insurgent leader involved in the war to topple the Chadian President Idriss Déby. Originally a fighter in the Democratic Revolutionary Council (CDR) militia during the first Chadian Civil War, under Déby he became a civil servant before defecting to the rebels in 2003. After having been for a time first in the FUC and later in the UFDD, he has founded in 2007 the UFDD-Fundamental, which has participated in February 2008 to the unsuccessful attack on N'Djamena.
The 2006 Chadian coup attempt was an attempted coup d'état against Chadian President Idriss Déby that was foiled on the night of March 14, 2006.
The Rally of Forces for Change, formerly the Rally of Democratic Forces is a Chadian rebel group formed mainly by Zaghawa, ethnic group to which President Idriss Déby belonged, deserters from the Chadian government and army and led by Timane and his twin brother Tom Erdimi. It is currently allied to the United Front for Democratic Change rebel group and both were dedicated to overthrowing Erdimi's uncle, Chadian President Idriss Déby and his administration. The 12,000 troops that make up the RFC were expected to disrupt the 2006 presidential elections, but they did not, and President Déby returned to power.
The 2004 Chadian coup d'état attempt was an attempted coup d'état against the Chadian President Idriss Déby that was foiled on the night of May 16, 2004.
Parliamentary elections were held in Chad on Sunday, 13 February 2011, the first since 2002. The elections were originally scheduled for 28 November 2010, but were postponed following a meeting in September between the ruling party and opposition leaders. According to the National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI), this was due to timing constraints caused by complications encountered during electoral preparations.
General Mahamat Nouri is a Chadian insurgent leader who currently commands the Union of Forces for Democracy and Development (UFDD). A Muslim from northern Chad, he began his career as a FROLINAT rebel, and when the group's Second Army split in 1976 he sided with his kinsman Hissène Habré. As Habré's associate he obtained in 1978 the first of the many ministerial positions in his career, becoming Interior Minister in a coalition government. When Habré reached the presidency in 1982, Nouri was by his side and played an important role in the regime.
The Battle of N'Djamena began on February 2, 2008, when Chadian rebel forces opposed to Chadian President Idriss Déby entered N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, after a three-day advance through the country. The rebels were initially successful, taking a large part of the city and attacking the heavily defended presidential palace. They did not capture the palace, and after two days of fighting they withdrew to outside the city. Around two days later they retreated east.
The populations of eastern Chad and western Sudan established social and religious ties long before either nation's independence, and these remained strong despite disputes between governments. In recent times, relations have been strained due to the conflict in Darfur and a civil war in Chad, which both governments accuse the other of supporting.
The Union of Resistance Forces is an alliance of Chadian rebel groups.
Yaya Dillo Djérou Bétchi was a Chadian politician, and president of the opposition Socialist Party Without Borders. He was a cousin of President Mahamat Déby and a major opponent of Déby in the 2024 presidential elections. Shortly after the date of the 2024 elections was announced, Dillo was killed in a reported exchange of fire with government security forces after allegedly leading an attack on the National State Security Agency.
Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno is a Chadian politician and military officer who has been the leader of Chad since 2021, first as President of the Transitional Military Council from 2021 to 2022, then as Transitional President from 2022 to 2024, and then as the 7th President since 2024 following his victory in the presidential elections. He is widely known in Chad by his nickname Kaka. He is also the General Secretary of the Patriotic Salvation Movement since 2022. He gained power on 20 April 2021, succeeding his father and predecessor, Idriss Déby, who died in action while commanding troops in the Northern Chad offensive. He previously served as the second in-command of the military for the Chadian Intervention in Northern Mali (FATIM).
The Northern Chad offensive was a military offensive in Northern Chad, initiated by the Chadian rebel group Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT), took place from 11 April to 9 May 2021. It began in the Tibesti Region in the north of the country following the 2021 Chadian presidential election.
The Transitional Military Council was a military junta that ruled Chad from 2021 to 2022. It announced the death of former President Idriss Déby on 20 April 2021, and declared that it would take charge of the government of Chad and continue hostilities against FACT rebels in the north of the country. It was chaired by Mahamat Idriss Déby, the son of the late President, making him the de facto President of Chad. It was dissolved on 10 October 2022, following a "national dialogue" that named Déby Transitional President and replaced the CMT with a transitional administration appointed by him.
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.
Events in the year 2022 in Chad.
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