Chad on the Brink: Opposition Leader’s Arrest Threatens Country’s Stability

Security forces in Chad arrested former opposition Prime Minister Soxhi Massara early Friday morning, in a move his party, the “Transformers,” described as an armed kidnapping of its leader.

The government has not issued any clarification regarding the arrest of the opposition leader, who came in third in last year’s presidential election. He claimed victory and later announced his acceptance of the official results, despite their apparent flaws, according to his description of the presidential election organized by General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, who won.

The arrest of the prominent opponent of President Mahamat Idriss Déby’s government was preceded by an official statement from the government spokesman announcing the deaths of 35 people in the Logone Occidental region in southern Chad.

A post on the official Facebook page of the “Transformers” party stated that “President Soxhi Massara was kidnapped at gunpoint on May 16 at 5:56 a.m. local time” from his home, which also serves as the party’s headquarters. The post was accompanied by surveillance camera footage showing the politician leaving his home surrounded by dozens of armed men in military uniform.

Prosecutor Omar Mohamed Kedilay confirmed Massara’s arrest by the judicial police in a phone call with Agence France-Presse (AFP) and announced his intention to hold a press conference later.

Soksi Massara, 41, who studied economics in France and Cameroon, was appointed prime minister five months before the May 2024 presidential elections, in which he ran in an unprecedented confrontation with incumbent President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, who won more than 60% of the vote.

The elections concluded a transitional phase in the country following the assassination of Idriss Déby Itno, the current president’s father, by rebels on his way to the front in 2021, after more than 30 years in power.