Chad’s President Déby’s funeral under way

His coffin was driven on the back of a pick-up truck to the Place de la Nation square for ceremonies attended by foreign leaders.

CAPE TOWN, April 23 (ANA) – Thousands of people gathered at the main square in Chad’s capital N’Djamena on Friday for the funeral of President Idriss Déby, who died this week while fighting rebels.

His coffin, draped in the national flag and surrounded by troops from the elite Presidential Guard, was driven on the back of a pick-up truck to the Place de la Nation square for ceremonies attended by foreign leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, news agency AFP reported on Friday.

The 68-year-old Déby, who had been in power for three decades, died of injuries sustained on the front line while fighting rebels in the north of the Sahel on Tuesday, according to army spokesperson General Azem Bermandoa Agouna.

His death was announced a day after he was declared the winner of the country’s presidential election held on April 11 with 79.3% of the vote, according to results released on Monday. He came to power in a rebellion in 1990 and was looking to extend his three-decade rule despite mounting calls for political change.

African presidents have conveyed their condolences to the people of Chad following the sudden death of their counterpart.

President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the chairperson of the African Union (AU) Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi said Déby’s death was a great loss for Chad and for the whole of Africa, Chinese news service CGTN reported.

A statement on the president’s Twitter account said he had “learned with dismay of the death of his counterpart and brother, Marshal Idriss Déby Itno, President of the Republic of Chad.

“On behalf of the Congolese and African people, the President of the Republic sends his most saddened condolences to the government of the Republic of Chad, to its people and to the biological family of the deceased.”

Cameroonian President Paul Biya on his Twitter account said “the disappearance of Marshal Idriss Déby Itno is an immense loss for Chad, Central Africa and our continent, which he will have served relentlessly”.

“President Idriss Déby Itno died as he lived. By fighting. My most saddened condolences to his family and to the Chadian people,” Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba wrote on his Twitter account.

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari said he was “deeply shocked and devastated by the sudden death of President Déby on the battlefront, defending the sovereignty of his country”.

Buhari added that the late president had played an active role in their regional joint collaboration in the military campaign against Boko Haram.

“He was a friend of Nigeria who enthusiastically lent his hand to our efforts to defeat the murderous Boko Haram terrorists that have posed grave security challenges not only for Nigeria, but also our African neighbours, particularly Chad, Cameroon and Niger Republic,” Buhari said in a series of tweets on Tuesday.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also sent condolences to the government and people of Chad.

“President Cyril Ramaphosa has received with sadness the disturbing news of the death of His Excellency Marshal Idriss Déby Itno, President of the Republic of Chad,” South Africa’s Presidency said in a statement.

“President Ramaphosa has, on behalf of the government and people of South Africa, extended his deepest condolences to the fallen president’s family as well as the government and people of Chad.”

– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher