Thousands of Chadians attended the state funeral of long-serving President Idriss D\u00e9by after he was killed earlier this week during a clash with rebels.<\/p>\n
Among the foreign leaders there was France\u2019s President Emmanuel Macron, for whom Chad is a key ally in the fight against jihadists in region.<\/p>\n
He addressed his words to the casket, saying \u201cyou lived as a soldier, you died as a soldier with weapons in hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gave your life for Chad in defence of its citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n
He told attendees at N\u2019Djamena packed main square, la Place de la Nation: \u201cWe will not let anybody put into question or threaten today or tomorrow Chad\u2019s stability and territorial integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n
He vowed to \u201cstay loyal to the memory\u201d of his father and pledged to continue the legacy of \u201cdialogue, forgiveness, peace, unity\u201d that the late president was \u201cadmired for\u201d.<\/p>\n
The ceremony also saw a military march-past and a speech by D\u00e9by\u2019s son, Gen Mahamat \u201cKaka\u201d D\u00e9by Itno, who the army has named as the country\u2019s new leader.<\/p>\n
The army says President D\u00e9by died in a battle with a dissident army rebel group, called Fact, in the country\u2019s north on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Other visiting heads of state at Friday\u2019s ceremony included the leaders of Guinea, Mali, Mauritania and Nigeria \u2013 who all ignored warnings from the rebels that they should not attend for security reasons.<\/p>\n
After the military honours and speeches, prayers are being said at the Grand Mosque of N\u2019Djamena.<\/p>\n
Then Mr D\u00e9by\u2019s remains will be flown to Amdjarass, a small village next to his hometown of Berdoba, more than 1,000 km (600 miles) from the capital, near the Sudanese border.<\/p>\n
News of his shock death on Tuesday was met with tributes from numerous presidents \u2013 France\u2019s Emmanuel Macron called him a \u201cbrave friend\u201d, Cameroon\u2019s Paul Biya said he served \u201ctirelessly\u201d, DR Congo\u2019s Felix Tshisikedi called it a \u201ca great loss for Chad and for all of Africa\u201d, Mali\u2019s President Bah Ndaw lamented his \u201cbrutal\u201d death and South Africa\u2019s Cyril Ramaphosa called it \u201cdisturbing\u201d.<\/p>\n
President D\u00e9by was a key player in security strategy in the Sahel region \u2013 and Chad is reputed for having one of the best-trained and best-equipped armies in West Africa, which is battling militants link to both al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.<\/p>\n
A military council led by his son, Gen Mahamat D\u00e9by Itno took power after his death.<\/p>\n
The BBC\u2019s Lalla Sy says he only has partial support of the army, however he is backed by former colonial ruler France, which has a large military base in N\u2019Djamena.<\/p>\n
On Thursday French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian appeared to back the military takeover, by saying the immediate priority in Chad was to ensure the country\u2019s stability amid \u201cexceptional circumstances\u201d.<\/p>\n
Gen D\u00e9by, 37, has said the army will hold democratic elections in 18 months, but opposition leaders have condemned his succession as a \u201ccoup\u201d and an army general said many officers were opposed to the transition. A general strike has been called in protest.<\/p>\n
Fact rebels also reject it but have called a temporary ceasefire while Friday\u2019s funeral takes place.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Friday, the rebels said their command centre had been bombed two days earlier in an attempt to kill their leader. Its location, and details of any casualties, were not specified. BBC<\/p>\n
Thousands of Chadians attended the state funeral of long-serving President Idriss D\u00e9by after he was killed earlier this week during a clash with rebels. Among the foreign leaders there was…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":79937,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n