Government troops clash with rebels in east

Government soldiers have launched a military offensive against rebels in eastern Chad, days after the government said it foiled a coup attempt against President Idriss Deby. The Chadian military on Monday attacked rebels near Adre, a city on the Chad-Sudan border, a government official told IRIN, declining to be named or to give more details. Yaya Dillo Djerou, self-proclaimed leader of the rebel group Platform for Change, National Unity and Democracy (SCUD), confirmed the attacks. Djerou told IRIN by phone that what he called SCUD’s base in eastern Chad had been attacked in two separate offensives – one from the west Monday morning and another from the east a few hours later. The rebels drove off the government forces, Djerou said, claiming that SCUD had killed 187 government soldiers and wounded several more, with 10 rebels dead and some 28 wounded. The figures could not be confirmed and government sources would not comment on casualties. The clashes come days after the Chadian government said it thwarted an attempt by coup plotters to shoot down Deby’s plane on his return from abroad, naming several army deserters inside the country as well as a number of people living outside Chad it said instigated the coup plot. President Deby is currently in eastern Chad, according to government sources. Since last October, waves of soldiers and military officers have deserted their posts and joined rebel groups in eastern Chad. Chad has long accused Sudan of backing insurgents, while Sudan has charged that Chad backs the three-year-old rebellion in Darfur. Eastern Chad, which abuts Sudan’s turbulent Darfur region, in recent months has seen a number of cross-border raids. Some 202,000 Sudanese refugees are living in camps in eastern Chad, and – according to an aid worker in the area – violence has also forced at least 20,000 Chadians from their homes. While all eyes were on military maneuvers, Tuesday marked the opening of the four-day period during which would-be contenders in Chad’s presidential election, set for 3 May, are to submit their candidatures. They would face Deby, who is allowed to run thanks to a controversial constitutional amendment in 2005 permitting a third term.