N’Djamena City, the capital of Chad experienced calmness on Thursday after a deadly attack by unknown assailants at the Presidential palace which led to the death of 18 assailants and a palace guard with others injured.
According to reports from AFP, heavy gunfire erupted near the presidential complex just before 8:00 pm local time (1900 GMT) on Wednesday, in the centre of N’Djamena, the capital of the military-ruled, central African country.
Government spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah said a 24-member commando unit carrying “weapons, machetes and knives” attacked the guards of the presidential palace before being swiftly stopped.
The group was dressed in civilian clothing and came from a poor neighbourhood in the south of the city, he said.
Koulamallah described them as drunken “Pieds Nickeles” — a reference to a French comic featuring hapless crooks.
He said late on Wednesday that 18 of the assailants were killed and six wounded. A presidential guard had also been killed and three others wounded.
However, the beefed-up security and roadblocks set up as a result of the attack have been lifted.
Koulamallah, who is also the foreign minister, told AFP that Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno was inside the presidential palace at the time of the attack but gave no more details.
Opposition members have voiced doubts about the government’s account of events. Max Kemkoye, spokesman for the Political Actors Consultation Group (GCAP) tagged it an “unfortunate synopsis” and a “set up” orchestrated by those in power.
Reports from AFP stated that the government spokesman and prosecutor would make a statement to accredited diplomats later in the day.
