Militar o Chad

The **militar o [[Chad]]** conseest o the Naitional Airmy (includes Grund Forces, Air Force, an Gendarmerie), Republican Gaird, Rapid Intervention Force, Polis, an Naitional an Nomadic Gaird (GNNT). Currently the main task o the Chadian militar is tae combat the various rebel forces inside the kintra.

## History

Frae unthirldom throu the period o the presidency of Félix Malloum (1975–79), the offeecial naitional airmy wis kent as the Chadian Airmed Forces (Forces Armées Tchadiennes—FAT). Componed mainly o sodgers frae soothren Chad, FAT haed its roots in the airmy recruitit bi Fraunce an haed militar tradeetions datin back tae Warld War I. FAT lost its status as the legal state airmy when Malloum's ceevil an militar admeenistration disintegratit in 1979. Awtho it remained a distinct militar body for seiveral years, FAT wis eventually reducit tae the status o a regional airmy representin the sooth.

Aifter Habré consolidatit his authority an assumed the presidency in 1982, his victorious airmy, the Airmed Forces o the North (Forces Armées du Nord—FAN), became the nucleus o a new Naitional Airmy. The force wis officially consteetutit in Januar 1983, when the various pro-Habré contingents wur merged an renamed the Chadian Naitional Airmed Forces (Forces Armées Nationales Tchadiennes—FANT).

The Militar o Chad wis dominatit bi members o Toubou, Zaghawa, Kanembou, Hadjerai, and Massa ethnic groups durin the presidency o Hissène Habré. Current Chadian preses Idriss Déby, revoltit an fled tae the Sudan, takin wi him mony Zaghawa an Hadjerai sodgers in 1989.

Chad's airmed forces nummered aboot 36,000 at the end o the Habré regime, but swelled tae an estimatit 50,000 in the early days o Déby's rule. Wi French support, a reorganisation o the airmed forces wis initiatir early in 1991 wi the goal o reducin its nummers an makin its ethnic composition reflective o the kintra as a whole. Neither o these goals wis achieved, an the militar is still dominatit bi the Zaghawa.

In 2004, the Govrenment discovered that mont o the sodgers it wis payin did nae exist an that thare wur anelie aboot 19,000 sodgers in the airmy, as opponed tae the 24,000 that haed been previously believit. Govrenment crackdouns against the practice are thout tae hae been a factor in a failed militar mutiny in tae 2004.

The current conflict, in which the Chadian militar is involved, is the ceevil war against Sudanese-backed rebels. Chad successfully manages tae repel the rebel muivements, but recently, wi some losses (see Battle o N'Djamena (2008)). The airmy uises its artillery seestems an tanks, but weel-equippit insurgents hae probably managed tae destroy ower 20 o Chad's 60 t-55 tanks, an probably shot doun a Mi-24 Hind gunship, which bombed enemy poseetions near the mairch wi Sudan. In November 2006 Libie supplied Chad wi fower Aermacchi SF.260W lixht attack planes. Thay are uised tae strike strike enemy poseetions bi the Chadian Air Force, but ane wis shot doun bi rebels. Durin the last battle o N'Djamena gunships an tanks hae been put tae guid uise, pushin airmed militia forces back frae the Presidential pailace. The battle impactit the heichest levels o the airmy leadership, as Daoud Soumain, its Chief o Staff, wis killed.
 from the Library of Congress Country Studies website http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/.

* John Keegan "World Armies" 
* R. Hure "L'Armee d' Afrique 1830-1962"