CHAD:Fears of further regional instability in central Africa were heightened last night amid reports that rebels had entered Chad's capital seeking to oust the country's president.
After a day of fierce clashes between government forces and rebels outside the capital N'Djamena, there were conflicting reports on how far the rebels had managed to push into the city.
Some claimed the rebels had gained control of N'Djamena but French defence minister Hervé Morin told Radio France last night that the fighting had taken place outside the capital.
Sources said little was known about the whereabouts of Chadian president Idriss Déby, with some claiming he had left the country along with several government officials.
The developments came as the EU said it would delay this week's planned deployment of forces to Chad.
The EU troops, which include 400 Irish soldiers, are tasked with protecting refugees who have fled the conflict in neighbouring Darfur as well as those displaced by local unrest in Chad and the Central African Republic.
Fighting between government forces and rebels broke out yesterday morning at Massaguet, some 50 km northeast of N'Djamena after thousands of rebels crossed the entire country in a matter of days.
The rebels are understood to have entered Chad from Sudan earlier this week, moving west in a convoy of some 300 vehicles. Military sources said the convoy split in two as it advanced on N'Djamena, with 2,500 rebels in one group and 1,500 in the other.
By Thursday evening, they had almost reached N'Djamena but were blocked by government troops positioned at the city's eastern and northern entrances, according to reports. Helicopters bombarded the rebel positions and fresh clashes occurred the following morning as the rebels moved closer to the capital.
France said yesterday it had sent about 150 supplementary troops to Chad as a "precautionary measure" in response to the rebel offensive.
Defence Ministry spokesman Col Thierry Burkhard said the Gabon-based troops arrived in N'Djamena early yesterday morning. The troops were not to take any combat role and were in Chad to ensure the security of French citizens "if it should prove necessary", Col Burkhard said.
The French Foreign Ministry warned its citizens against travelling in the country and urged French expatriates in Chad to stay inside their homes.
French officials had earlier raised the alert level for French troops in Chad after reports that the rebels were moving toward N'Djamena.
France has around 2,000 soldiers based in Chad, which gained independence from France in 1960.
French troops have openly assisted Mr Déby in his battle against rebel groups, helping to stave off an attempted coup against the president in 2006.
Yesterday's dramatic developments come amid ratcheting tensions between Chad and Sudan.
Chad borders the troubled Sudanese region of Darfur where fighting between local rebels and Khartoum-backed militias has killed at least 200,000 and displaced more than two million since 2004.
Chad accuses Sudan of arming rebels seeking to oust Mr Déby, a former rebel who has ruled Chad since he took power in a military coup in 1990. Sudan on the other hand blames Chad for supporting rebel groups in Darfur.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon warned that tensions in the region were escalating, and urged Chad and Sudan to refrain from cross-border attacks. "These developments are extremely dangerous and could lead to an escalation of the conflict," Mr Ban said at an African Union meeting in Ethiopia.
One of Africa's least stable nations, Chad's post-colonial history has been marked by a succession of insurgencies, coups and broken accords. Several rebel movements drawn from a variety of ethnic groups have sought to overthrow Mr Déby.
A former defence minister, Mahamat Nouri, leads one group, the Union of Forces for Democracy and Development. Another group is led by one of Mr Déby's nephews, Timane Erdimi.
The country's internal political situation has deteriorated rapidly since late last year when a peace agreement signed between Mr Déby and rebel leaders began to fray. In late November several hundred government troops and rebels were killed when fighting broke out between government soldiers and rebels. Late in December and early in January, Chadian aircraft targeted the rebels, flying over their camps on the Sudanese side of the border.
Earlier this month the three main rebel factions opposed to Mr Déby set up a single military command. The decision to join forces followed a deal struck between the rebels in mid-December. Up to then, the Chad government had exploited the split between the three rebel groups in a bid to contain them.