Khartoum armed Arab insurgents inside Chad and dispatched them to overthrow Deby?

Western diplomats believe Sudan is trying to oust Mr Deby in retaliation for his role in the Darfur war, writes David Blair in Telegraph April 14. Excerpt:

Western diplomats believe Sudan is trying to oust Mr Deby in retaliation for his role in the Darfur war.

Khartoum has accused him of arming the rebels who began the fighting in Darfur three years ago.

Mr Deby comes from the black African Zaghawa tribe, also present in Darfur. The Zaghawas were among the tribes who rose up against Khartoum's control of Darfur.

Sudan believes Mr Deby sent arms to the main rebel group in Darfur, styling itself the Sudan Liberation Army.

Western diplomats have no doubt Sudan responded by arming Arab insurgents inside Chad and dispatching them to overthrow Mr Deby.

He is deeply unpopular in much of Chad, where Zaghawas make up only seven per cent of the population. The Arab tribes are his traditional opponents and they look to Khartoum's Arab-dominated regime for support.

Further reading

Apr 02 2006 Mohamat Nour's Chadian rebel United Front for Change (FUC) aims to depose Chadian president Deby

Apr 10 2005 African military monitors now on Sudan-Chad-CAR border - On Feb 8, 2006 the leaders of Sudan and Chad signed a peace agreement to end increasing tension over Darfur, pledging to normalize diplomatic relations and deny refuge to each other's rebel groups. The agreement is known as the Tripoli Declaration. On March 21, 2006 the African Union Peace and Security Council endorsed plans to deploy military observers on the Chad-Sudan border as per the Tripoli Declaration. Next day, the African Union sent observers on the Chad-Sudan border.

Apr 10 2006 FUC in eastern Chad mount fresh offensive to get to N'Djamena and oust Chadian President Deby

Apr 13 2006 France supports Deby - Chad says rebel attack on capital N'Djamena defeated - Chad claims rebels replused, blames Sudan for fomenting 'coup'

Apr 13 2006 French Mirage fighter dropped bomb near Chadian rebels heading for N'Djamena

Apr 13 2006 UN evacuating 148 staff from Chad into Cameroon - French planes had fired "warning shots"



Photo: Leaders of Chad and Sudan on the evening of Wednesday 8 Feb 2006 signed a peace agreement in Tripoli, Libya under which they promised to immediately expel armed groups hostile to their respective governments. See Apr 10 African military monitors now on Sudan-Chad-CAR border.



Image via Genocide au Darfour blog entry posted by Le Comite 30 March 2006 - excerpt:

MAHAMAT NOUR ABDELKRIM
Le "capitaine" Mahamat Nour, ex-officier de l'armee tchadienne, est recherche pour avoir dirige les Janjawids, et avoir ete le principal planificateur du genocide au Darfour. De par sa nationalite tchadienne, il servait d'alibi au gouvernement soudanais. -- Human Rights Watch found evidence of coordination between Janjaweed militias and Muhammad Nour's RDL rebels.

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Darfur's men vanish from refugee camp

Apr 14 2006 Reuters report Darfur's men vanish from refugee camp - Freelance Reuters journalist Gabriela Matthews reports on the recruitment of Sudanese refugees from camps near Darfur by armed groups. Life is tough for everyone in the camps, including aid workers.
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Summary: Chad Fighting Sign of Trouble

Summary by The Associated Press Staff and agencies Apr 13, 2006:

COUNTRY OF CONFLICT: Chad suffered through a 1960-90 civil war and several small-scale insurgencies since 1998. Libya has repeatedly invaded, and 200,000 refugees from Sudan's Darfur region now live in eastern Chad.

OIL CONNECTION: Cracks began to form within the government when it started pumping oil in 2004. The rebellion is at least in part over who gets to control oil revenue.