Idriss Déby, the veteran president of Chad, is dead, the central African state’s national radio has said.
The shock announcement came a day after Deby, who came to power in a rebellion in 1990, won a sixth term, as per provisional results released on Monday.
A statement from the military said the 68-year-old ruler, in power for 30 years, had been killed “on the battlefield” after being injured fighting rebels but gave no further details.
The military said Deby had been commanding his army at the weekend as it battled against rebels who had launched a major incursion into the north of the country on election day.
Veteran president, who came to power in a rebellion in 1990, took 79.3 percent of the vote in the April 11 election
A curfew has been imposed and the country’s borders have been shut in the wake of the sudden death of the president.
More soon…
