Published on 30/10/2024
President Mahamat Idriss Deby of Chad has initiated a major security operation to confront Boko Haram fighters responsible for an attack on Sunday that killed over 40 Chadian soldiers in the Lake Chad Basin, a region shared by Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger and Chad. Following the incident, Deby visited the area, honoring the fallen troops by attending their burial.
Chad’s state television reports that Deby has also decreed flags at half-mast and restricted broadcast stations across the country to only religious music for a mourning period starting October 28 at midnight, lasting three days.
Deby announced on Monday the three days of national mourning after visiting Ngouboua, a western village in Lake Chad, on the island of Bakaram, near the border with Nigeria where Boko Haram fighters killed at least 40 Chad government troops on Sunday night, according to Chad state TV.
Videos of Deby dressed in a military uniform and present at the burial of soldiers killed have been broadcast several times since Monday by local TV stations, including Chad state TV.
After the burials, Deby announced the launch of “Haskanite,” a military operation with fresh troops deployed to Lake Chad, to search out and eliminate members of the terror group hiding in the large area. Deby spoke on Chad state TV.
He said as president of Chad, he is the supreme commander of government troops and guarantor of the security and safety of civilians, and that he has ordered Chad’s military to protect civilians and their property by tracking and eliminating Boko Haram terrorists who committed atrocious acts on government troops and are hiding in the vast Lake Chad.
Chad officials note that Haskanite is a strong and resilient plant that grows in deserts and in the Lake Chad area. The deployed government troops are experienced and have the equipment necessary to defeat the jihadists, Deby said.
Chad military officials say they estimate the number of soldiers in the jihadist attacking force was 300 and that the surprise assault came Sunday at around 10 pm. In addition to the 40 deaths, several dozen government soldiers were injured, they said.
Scores of the attackers were killed and the fighters succeeded to escape with some dead bodies and seized weapons according to Chad’s military. Many civilians either died or were injured in the attack, Chad military says. Deby ordered that all civilians and troops receive medical carefree of charge.
Chad’s military says the heavily armed jihadist fighters took control of the garrison before torching vehicles, motorcycles and buildings equipped with heavy arms. The attackers disappeared in the waters of lake Chad and surrounding villages.
Saibou Issa, a conflict resolution specialist at Cameroon’s University of Maroua, says it will be difficult for Chad to singlehandedly fight the jihadists in Lake Chad.
Issa says it is obvious that poverty and hardship push Boko Haram fighters who either surrendered or were weakened by the firepower of forces from Cameroon, Nigeria, Chad and Niger to rejoin smaller jihadist groups in Lake Chad. He says Lake Chad, which serves as a hideout for jihadist groups, is vast and only joint efforts from states that share the lake can stop militants, who are becoming more active.
Issa spoke on Cameroon state Radio on Tuesday. He said the militants attack mainly for supplies and seize weapons from both armed groups and government troops in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria.
Chad’s government says it has informed the Multinational Joint Task Force of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, or MNJTF — made up of 11,000 troops and rescue workers from Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria — to assist in a renewed push against the terror group. Cameroon says its military is alert.
The United Nations says over 40,000 people have been killed and 3 million have fled their homes in Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad. since 2009, when fighting between Nigerian government troops and Boko Haram militants degenerated into an armed conflict and spread to Cameroon, Niger and Chad.
