Chad president launches operation to fight Boko Haram after attack kills over 40 troops

Chad's President Mahama Idriss Deby has launched a security operation to track and neutralize several hundred Boko Haram fighters who attacked and killed on Sunday more than 40 Chad government troops in the Lake Chad Basin, shared by Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger and Chad. Deby visited the area on Monday and assisted in the burial of his soldiers.

Chad state TV reports that President Mhamat Idriss Deby has ordered that flags be flown at half-mast and that all radio and tv stations in the central African states should play only religious music for three days from October 28 at midnight.

Deby announced on Monday the three days of national mourning after visiting Ngouboua, a western village in Lake Chad, on the island of Bakaram, near the border with Nigeria where Boko Haram fighters killed at least 40 Chad government troops on Sunday night, according to Chad state TV.

Videos of Deby dressed in a military uniform and present at the burial of soldiers killed have been broadcast several times since Monday by local TV stations, including Chad state TV.

After the burials, Deby announced the launch of "Haskanite," a military operation with fresh troops deployed to Lake Chad, to search out and eliminate members of the terror group hiding in the large area. Deby spoke on Chad state TV.

He said as president of Chad, he is the supreme commander of government troops and guarantor of the security and safety of civilians, and that he has ordered Chad's military to protect civilians and their property by tracking and eliminating Boko Haram terrorists who committed atrocious acts on government troops and are hiding in the vast Lake Chad.

Chad officials note that Haskanite is a strong and resilient plant that grows in deserts and in the Lake Chad area.

The deployed government troops are experienced and have the equipment necessary to defeat the jihadists, Deby said.

Chad military officials say they estimate the number of soldiers in the jihadist attacking force was 300 and that the surprise assault came Sunday at around 10 pm. In addition to the 40 deaths, several dozen government soldiers were injured, they said.

Scores of the attackers were killed and the fighters succeeded to escape with some dead bodies and seized weapons according to Chad's military.

Many civilians either died or were injured in the attack, Chad military says. Deby ordered that all civilians and troops receive medical care free of charge.

Chad's military says the heavily armed jihadist fighters took control of the garrison before torching vehicles, motorcycles and buildings equipped with heavy arms. The attackers disappeared in the waters of lake Chad and surrounding villages.

Saibou Issa, a conflict resolution specialist at Cameroon’s University of Maroua, says it will be difficult for Chad to singlehandedly fight the jihadists in Lake Chad.

Issa says it is obvious that poverty and hardship push Boko Haram fighters who either surrendered or were weakened by the firepower of forces from Cameroon, Nigeria, Chad and Niger to rejoin smaller jihadist groups in Lake Chad.

He says Lake Chad, which serves as a hideout for jihadist groups, is vast and only joint efforts from states that share the lake can stop militants, who are becoming more active.

Issa spoke on Cameroon state Radio on Tuesday. He said the militants attack mainly for supplies and seize weapons from both armed groups and government troops in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria.

Chad's government says it has informed the Multinational Joint Task Force of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, or MNJTF — made up of 11,000 troops and rescue workers from Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria — to assist in a renewed push against the terror group.

VOA could not independently verify if troops of MNJTF have been deployed, but Cameroon says its military is alert.

The United Nations says over 40,000 people have been killed and 3 million have fled their homes in Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad. since 2009, when fighting between Nigerian government troops and Boko Haram militants degenerated into an armed conflict and spread to Cameroon, Niger and Chad.