A new charter has replaced the Constitution of Chad, making Mahamat the interim President and head of the armed forces.
All the country’s institutions, including Parliament, have been suspended, a move that has been branded a coup d'etat by opposition groups.
Who is Mahamat ibn Idriss Déby Itno?
Mahamat Déby Itno first enrolled at the Joint Grouping of military schools in Chad. He subsequently received training in France, at the military school of Aix-en-Provence.
Upon his return, he was enrolled in the second promotion of semi-direct of the school of officer inter arme and later was appointed to the service branch for the Security of State Institutions (SERS), as a deputy commander of the groupement of infenterie.
His first combat experience took place in April 2006 when rebels attacked the capital city of Chad and later participated in a combat in eastern Chad along with General Abu Bakr al Said, then director of gendarmery, Mahamat was given the rank of major afterward. He led forces when he took part in the command of Chadian forces during the Battle of Am Dam, where his army defeated the rebels.
Following his victory, he was appointed in command of the armored squadrons and bodyguards of the SERS.
In January 2013, he was appointed second in command of the Chadian special forces in Mali under general Oumar Bikimo.
On 22 February, he led his army against rebels in the Adrar al-Ifoghas mountains in Northern Mali leading to the Battle of al-Ifoghas.
They eliminated a rebel base said to be of "significant importance", inflicting heavy losses upon the rebels but also losing twenty-six men in the process, including Abdel Aziz Hassane Adam, a commander of special forces.
Mahamat took full command of the FATIM and has since been leading operations against rebels in the North. (ILKHA)