June 10, 2006:
Raids by Sudanese gunmen have caused some 50,000 Chadian villagers to become refugees in their own country. The Sudanese government is supplying the raiders with weapons, and sanctuary in Sudan. The raiders, who were mobilized by the Sudanese government to fight rebels in western Sudan (Darfur), have run out of pro-rebel villages to raid. Thus the raids into Chad, where some of the Sudanese rebels have taken refuge. The Sudanese rebels use the UN supported refugee camps for recruiting, and a source of food and other supplies. The Sudanese raiders also hit the UN refugee camps. The Sudanese raiders consider themselves Arabs, while most of the refugees and Chadians consider themselves just African. The Arabs have, for thousands of years, looked down on the Africans. This ancient prejudice plays a large role in the Darfur war spilling over into Chad.
June 4, 2006: Chad rebels clashed with the army on the Sudanese border, in an effort to help to army officers and some soldiers desert to the rebels. The fighting left ten soldiers dead and 17 wounded. The rebels lost 22 dead and 37 wounded.
May 31, 2006: There's another civil war in Chad. There are three armed groups fighting the government. The most dangerous is the FUC (led by Mahamat Nour), which is a coalition of groups backed by Sudan. The Rally of Democratic Forces (RFD) is largely composed of members of the Zaghawa tribe, which president Deby belongs to. RFD is led by a former member of Deby's government. The Movement for Democracy and Justice in Chad (MDJT), has been skirmishing with the government since 1998, in the far north, along the Libyan border. Led by Mahmat Choua Dazi, MDJT earned some gratitude from the United States by chasing down Islamic terrorists who tried to cross through MDJT controlled territory. None of these three opposition groups are strong enough to bring down the government, especially as long as France maintains several thousand troops in the country. But the government isn't strong enough to take down the rebels either.
There are 70 or so political parties in Chad, most of them opposed to the 16 year rule of president Deby.
