Idriss Déby has been a huge figure – three decades in power.
The most significant military actor in the region, deploying forces to assist Nigeria in the campaign against Boko Haram, a major player in the G5 Sahel, with troops in Mali and Niger, and a big influence over events in the Central African Republic.
Internally, the regime still appears to be in command, now headed by his son.
But the longer term outlook is uncertain. Mr Déby had just been re-elected in a contest that opponents felt was far from democratic – it is not clear whether his successor will be able to sustain this authoritarian system.
Internal politics and rivalries within Mr Déby’s own Zaghawa clan are also a consideration.
It is reported that Mr Déby was wounded fighting rebels in Kanem region, just 400km (248 miles) from the capital, N’Djaména – the previous bout of rebel activity had been much further north, in the Sahara and near to the border with Libya.
But this suggests instability has moved much further south.
There are deep underlying political, societal and development pressures in Chad that had been contained by Mr Déby’s forceful rule but certainly not resolved.
Much will depend on how his son’s new military regime manages to prepare the next political stage and whether it will seek to develop dialogue and consensus about the way forward or whether it will try to sustain the type of constitutional strongman regime that Mr Déby had built.
Source: BBC
