Military Claims It’s Defeated Rebel Group

On 9 May 2021, the military claimed that it defeated the Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT) rebel group following recent clashes in the northern province of Kanem, although a FACT spokesperson refuted these claims. Lending validity to the military claims, Chadian soldiers returned to the capital city N’Djamena on 9 May with tanks and armored vehicles, as well as captured militants whom they delivered to an army base in the city.

Also taking place over the weekend, on 8 May security forces clashed with protesters in N’Djamena, firing tear gas to disperse the crowd. Demonstrators had gathered to protest the Transitional Military Council (CMT), claiming that the military unfairly seized power following the death of President Idriss Déby in April amid the conflict with FACT. While the protest organizers called for additional rallies on 9 May, they were ultimately postponed due to the clashes that occurred the previous day.