Violent clash in southwest Chad have left 35 people killed and 6 injured, the Government said on Thursday, May 15, without specifying who was involved. According to a local source, the conflict is thought to be centered on a disagreement between local Ngambaye farmers and ethnic Fulani nomadic herders, regarding the boundaries of farming and grazing areas in the village of Mandakao.
According to government spokesperson and minister of Communication Gassim Cherif Mahamat, the clash in the Logone-Occidental region on Wednesday, May 14, also injured six people. “This tragic clash resulted in 35 fatalities and six injuries,” he stated, adding that security and defense forces swiftly stepped in and brought the situation under control.
On the same topic this Friday, May 16, former Chadian Prime Minister Succes Masra was arrested early, in connection with a probe into allegations of inciting the “public to hatred and hostility”, according to the country’s Attorney general, Oumar Mahamat Kedelaye.
In southern Chad, where Christian and animist communities complain of being ignored by the predominantly Muslim central government, clashes are common. Mostly Christian or animist indigenous sedentary farmers and nomadic Muslim herders are frequently involved in the violence. The International Crisis Group estimates that between 2021 and 2024, conflicts between pastoralists and sedentary farmers resulted in over 1,000 fatalities and 2,000 injuries.