Prosecutor says Chadian opposition leader Yaya Dilo killed in shooting

Chadian opposition politician Yaya Dilo was killed in a firefight with security forces on Wednesday, Chadian national prosecutor Omar Mohamed Kedeleye said on Thursday.

Reuters witnesses said heavy gunfire was heard in the capital N’Djamena on Wednesday near the opposition party headquarters in Dilo. Earlier, clashes broke out near the building of Chad’s internal security agency, resulting in multiple deaths.

Tensions have risen and violence has erupted as presidential elections scheduled for May and June could return constitutional rule to the Central African country three years after the military seized power.

By Thursday morning, calm had returned to the capital and residents were returning to work, but internet access, which had been blocked a day earlier, had not yet been restored, Reuters witnesses said.

On Wednesday, the headquarters of the opposition Socialists Without Borders party led by Dillo was sealed off by security forces. But the government and party described events differently.

A government statement said security agencies were attacked by representatives of the party, resulting in multiple deaths.

Elaborating on a separate incident, the government said party member Ahmed Torabi had attempted to assassinate Supreme Court President Samir Adam Annour. Torabi was allegedly arrested.

The opposition general secretary told Reuters the deaths near the security establishment were caused by soldiers shooting at a group of party members.

He said Torabi was shot on Tuesday and his body was being stored at the agency’s headquarters. The general secretary said that on Wednesday morning, when party members and relatives of Torabi went to the institution to search for his body, soldiers opened fire on them, killing several people.

Chad’s supreme court in December approved a vote on a new constitution, which critics say could help consolidate the power of military junta leader Mohamed Idriss Deby.

Deby’s junta is one of several military juntas currently ruling West and Central Africa, which has seen eight coups since 2020, raising concerns about democratic backsliding in the region.