Tibesti 2002

[roberto]

Chadian army 'kills' dozens of rebels


The government of Chad says the army has killed more than 120 rebels in the north-eastern region of Ennedi.

An official statement quoted by the French news agency AFP says government soldiers also captured more than 60 rebels during the two-day combing operation.

A spokesman for the rebels of the Movement for Democracy and Justice in Chad (MDJT) denied the government reports, saying that rebels had killed 40 soldiers in the area on Sunday.

The rebels, based in the Tibesti region in northern Chad, have been fighting to overthrow President Idriss Deby since 1998.

Libya

Last year the Chadian Government and the rebels signed a Libyan-brokered peace deal, ending three years of civil war.

But the MDJT leadership remained divided, with hardliners - including the movement's late founder, Youssouf Togoimi - rejecting the accord.

Mr Togoimi, a former defence minister under Deby, died of his wounds in neighbouring Libya last month after being injured in a mine explosion in Tibesti in August.

Libya was responsible for ensuring that the peace deal was respected.

In the mid 1980s, Libya and Chad fought a war when Libya tried to annexe the Aouzou strip in northern Chad.

But correspondents say that President Muammar Gaddafi has been close to President Deby since helping him seize power in 1990.

Libya is one of the main sources of aid to Chad.