A disorganized group of drunken men attacked the presidential palace in Chad. Security forces were able to overwhelm the attackers; 19 people were killed in the bloody incident.
Security sources initially said the attackers were members of the jihadist militia Boko Haram. Now Chadian Foreign Minister and government spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah made it clear that the attack was the work of a drunken group.
The group was quickly overwhelmed by the presidential guard, Koulamallah said. “The situation is completely under control.” Koulamallah said they were “probably not terrorists.” So it was an attack without a ‘serious’ motive.
Alcoholic “Pieds Nickeles”
He described the attackers as drunken “Pieds Nickeles” – a reference to a French comic strip featuring hapless thugs. Koulamallah said there were a total of 24 attackers. 18 of them were killed and the remaining six were injured. On the government side, one person was killed and three others were injured.
He said four security guards were initially attacked before the men entered the presidential complex. There they could “easily” be overwhelmed. The surviving attackers were “completely drugged” – apparently under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
While there was initially talk of a heavily armed commando, Koulamallah explained that the attackers had “no weapons of war” with them. They were equipped with machetes and knives, among other things. In the end, it was a “completely desperate”, “quite incomprehensible” attack without a “serious” motive, the government spokesman emphasized. He assured that there is currently no threat to the country and its security.
Attack after visit by Chinese Foreign Minister
Journalists from the AFP news agency had earlier heard shots near the presidential palace in the capital N’Djamena. All access roads to the presidential residence were blocked and tanks could be seen on the streets. The attack came a few hours after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the capital. He was received by Head of State Mahamad Idriss Déby Itno, among others. According to government spokesman Koulamallah, he was in the presidential palace at the time of the attack.
Contested elections
A new parliament was elected in Chad at the end of December. The opposition had previously leveled accusations of manipulation and called for a boycott of the elections. However, the government of the Central African state in the Sahel region presented the elections as an important step toward ending the three-year military government. However, voter turnout in the elections was low.
Déby was confirmed as president in May in elections criticized by the opposition. In April 2021, he was appointed interim president by the army at the head of a military government after his father Idriss Déby Itno was killed by rebels. He had ruled Chad, which had been independent since 1960, with an heavy hand for thirty years.
Source: Krone
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