37 dead in intercommunal fighting in Chad: president
Aug 09, 2019
He said that in just three days, 37 people were killed in the eastern province of Ouaddie, a strategic area on the border with Sudan.
At least 37 people have been killed in fighting this week between rival ethnic groups in Chad, President Idriss Deby said on Friday.
"The intercommunal conflict has become a national concern," Deby said at a press conference to mark the country's independence day.
"We are witnessing a terrible phenomenon."
He said that in just three days, 37 people were killed in the eastern province of Ouaddie, a strategic area on the border with Sudan.
Eastern Chad is in the grip of a cycle of violence between nomadic camel herders -- many from the Zaghawa ethnic group from which Deby hails -- and sedentary farmers from the Ouaddian community.
Last month Deby, who has been in power for almost three decades, hinted that military courts may be reintroduced in a bid to curb the unrest, a suggestion denounced by the country's opposition.