Cape Town — More than 400 rebels accused of killing Chad's former president Idriss Déby Itno, 69, on April 20, 2021 - days after he was re-elected for a sixth term as president - have been sentenced to life in prison. The rebels were convicted of terrorism, using child soldiers and undermining Chad's integrity and security, an appeals court ruled in a closed hearing on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.
The month-long mass trial charged 454 members of the Front For Change and Concord rebel group for killing the long time leader who died under suspicious circumstances while visiting his troops at the frontline during clashes with the rebel group - who was advancing toward the capital, N'Djamena. Two dozen people on trial were acquitted.
Idriss Déby Itno was a long-serving military officer and president of Chad from 1990 until his death. He was also a member of the Bidayat clan of the Zaghawa ethnic group, which occupies the majority of posts in the transitional military council. Leadership of the council was seized by Déby's adopted son Mahamat Idriss Déby, who is also of the Zaghawa ethnic group.
According to the constitution, the president of parliament should have acted as interim leader and called for new elections. A transitional constitution now grants Mahamat Déby even more power than his father ever had.
Déby's death raised concerns around security in the region, particularly for Nigeria's Borno State which borders Chad. Borno State, particularly its capital Maiduguri, witnessed over a decade of lethal attacks by insurgent groups of the Islamic State in West Africa Province, Boko Haram, and other militant groups.
According to AP, the leader of the rebel group Mahamat Mahdi, in addition to life imprisonment, has been fined U.S.$30 million to be paid to Chad's government for damages.
