N’Djamena, Chad—

Chad’s interim President Mohamed Idriss Deby said on Saturday he plans to run in this year’s long-awaited presidential election.

Deby’s confirmation comes at the end of a chaotic week that saw opposition politician Yayadillo shot dead in the capital, N’Djamena.

Dillo died under controversial circumstances on Wednesday, further exposing divisions among the ruling elite at a politically sensitive time as the Central African country prepares to promise a return to democratic rule at the ballot box.

Chad’s government said Dilo was killed in a firefight with security forces and accused members of his party of also attacking domestic security agencies.

On Friday, the government confirmed that Deby’s uncle, General Saleh Deby Itno, had been arrested following Wednesday’s incident.

Itno recently defected to the opposition Socialists Without Borders (PSF) in Dilo.

“He has now been charged by the prosecutor and his life is not in danger,” government spokesman Abdelrahman Kulamala said, without specifying what charges Itno faced.

Chadian rebel group the Front for Change and Harmony in Chad (FACT) and the opposition National Council for Democracy described Dilo’s death as an assassination.

The URT opposition party said Dilo was “democratically opposed to the dangerous trajectory of Chad’s military transition”.

The URT said in a statement on Saturday that the recent incidents were “a dangerous and deliberate move aimed at silencing political opposition.”

Deby addressed supporters and state officials, announcing his candidacy for the May-June election, but made no mention of Dillo’s killing or his uncle’s arrest.

“I accept this nomination with honor, humility, responsibility and gratitude,” he said.

Deby initially promised an 18-month electoral transition after taking power in 2021, when his long-ruling father was killed in clashes with rebels.

But his government later passed a resolution to postpone the election to 2024 and allow him to run for president.

Protests triggered by the postponement of the election were violently suppressed by security forces, resulting in the deaths of approximately 50 civilians.