Nairobi — Impunity for “Black Thursday” as Political Space Closes Chadian authorities have failed to carry out prompt, effective, and independent criminal investigations into serious human rights violations linked to massive protests across the country on October 20, 2022, and to hold those found responsible to account, Human Rights Watch said today. Security forces fired […]
Debating Ideas reflects the values and editorial ethos of the African Arguments book series, publishing engaged, often radical, scholarship, original and activist writing from within the African continent and beyond. It offers debates and engagements, contexts and controversies, and reviews and responses flowing from the African Arguments books. It is edited and managed by the […]
Deploying drones and other technology might change the conflict dynamics, giving violent extremists the upper hand. Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) could be close to using delivery drones for attacks in the Lake Chad Basin. Weaponising and adapting unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is a new trend in the group’s operational strategy, and could worsen […]
By the time the current conflict in Sudan broke out in mid-April, its Darfur region had already been facing war and ethnic violence for over two decades. Today’s fighting has rekindled fault lines in communities throughout Darfur, particularly the city of El Geneina. Intense fighting, intercommunal violence, and large-scale attacks against civilians have driven hundreds […]
Chad has reported its first dengue outbreak, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The country’s health ministry declared an outbreak on 15 August and so far 1,342 suspected cases have been reported, 41 of them confirmed in the laboratory. One death was reported among the patients with lab-confirmed cases. The outbreak started in Ouaddaï […]
Chad is hosting more than 1 million people forced to leave their homes, including nearly 400,000 Sudanese refugees. Chad fears the conflict between rival army generals will pile more pressure on its limited resources. Antoine, a Congolese man who has been living in Sudan for around 20 years, is desperate to flee the country amid […]
Nearly a decade of experience managing Boko Haram defectors is invaluable for West Africa and the Sahel. Terror groups in the Sahel are becoming more resilient, making it hard for governments and their partners to degrade them. As the region explores options besides military operations, efforts to demobilise and reintegrate those who leave violent extremist […]
Authoritarianism is on the rise, coups back in fashion, and elections reduced to a perfunctory ritual. How do we reverse the slide? Liberal democracy is losing steam. With the recent coup in Gabon, Africa celebrated the ignoble milestone of 109 successful coups on the continent. A third of Europeans are voting for populist, anti-establishment parties […]
Adré, Chad — ‘I have visited Chad three times since the start of the war and I have seen that the humanitarian response has barely improved.’ Seven months ago, at a crowded hospital in eastern Chad, I met a Darfuri man called Jumaa. His wife had just been killed, his children were sick, and he […]
As elections approach in Chad, the country’s civil society fears that nothing will change. The vote should mark the country’s transition back to democracy after three years of military government, but the opposition says France, which has a military presence there, has an interest in maintaining the status quo. Mahamat Idriss Deby, who took power […]
WFP and other humanitarians fear a perfect storm, as refugee influx from Sudan’s unrest is compounded by upcoming rains, lean season and a funding crunch When the fighters came to her Sudanese village, 50-year-old Aicha Madar fled with her daughter Fatima, joining thousands streaming across the border into eastern Chad. “The armed groups burned everything,” […]
Following increased fighting in El Geneina in Sudan’s West Darfur, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams working across the border in eastern Chad have seen an immediate and major increase in the number of people arriving in the region. Refugees coming from Sudan are mainly women and children, and recount stories of large-scale violence against civilians. […]
With an electoral process dominated by the interim president and former ruling party, Chad’s transition is in jeopardy. After an unconstitutional takeover in 2021, Chad’s transition to democracy is entering its final phase, with the adoption of the new constitution last December. In preparation for presidential elections before October 2024, a National Election Management Agency […]
Despite some positive steps, a return to constitutional order and civilian rule is still a long way off. April 2023 marked two years of transition in Chad. Initiated after the death of president Idriss Déby Itno, the process was primarily aimed at uniting the Chadian population and restoring constitutional order. Openness and inclusiveness were to […]
The assassination of Chad’s main opposition leader, Yaya Dillo, is hanging heavy over presidential elections due in early May. Dillo was killed on 28 February when the headquarters of the opposition Party Socialiste sans Frontières (Party of Socialists without Borders) in the Chadian capital N’Djamena was besieged by the newly formed Rapid Reaction Force. It’s […]