CRISIS IN CHAD

CRISIS IN CHAD

Subject : International Relations

Context: Recently, Chad’s longest serving president IdrissDeby died of injuries sustained during clashes with the rebel group FACT (Front for Change and Concord in Chad) on the frontlines.

Concept:

• The motive behind military operations in the Sahel countries is to fight Islamist groups, monitor political ambitions, and train future African leaders.
• Chad has been France’s most effective and stable Sahel ally in achieving these goals.
• France has nearly 5,100 French soldiers in the Sahel region for France’s Operation Barkhane which began in 2014 to lead counter-terrorism operations in the Sahel region.
• France says its objective is to help Sahel nations maintain territorial integrity and prevent rise of Islamist groups that threaten France and the West.

About Chad

• It is a landlocked state in north-central Africa.
• It is bounded on the north by Libya, on the east by Sudan, on the south by the Central African Republic, and on the west by Cameroon, Nigeria, and Niger.
• It is the fifth largest country on the African continent.

What is Sahel region of Africa?

• It is a semi-arid region of western and north-central Africa extending from Senegal eastward to Sudan.
• It forms a transitional zone between the arid Sahara (desert) to the north and the belt of humid savannas to the south.
• The Sahel stretches from Senegal on the Atlantic coast, through parts of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Sudan to Eritrea on the Red Sea coast .