APPENDIX B -- Chad

PRINCIPAL ARMED FACTIONS, 1975-87

ANL

see National Liberation Army.

Armed Forces of the North (Forces Armées du Nord--FAN)

Composed of FROLINAT (q.v.) units that remained loyal to Habré following his break from Goukouni Oueddei in 1976. Consisting at first of only a few hundred Toubou and some Hajerai and Ouaddaïan fighters, FAN began its operations from bases in eastern Chad, where it received help from Sudan. Driven from N'Djamena back to its eastern refuge after the Libyan incursion of 1980, FAN scored a series of victories over Goukouni's GUNT (q.v.) forces in 1982, which culminated in the recapture of N'Djamena and Habré's assumption of the presidency. FAN became the core of the new national army, FANT (q.v.), in January 1983.

CCFAN

See Second Liberation Army of FRONLINAT.

CDR

see Democratic Revolutionary Council.

Chadian Armed Forces (Forces Armées Tchadiennes--FAT)

The army of the central government of President Félix Malloum until his downfall in 1979, when the head of the gendarmerie, Wadel Abdelkader Kamougué, assumed command. Joined by gendarmerie units, FAT became a regional force representing primarily the Sara ethnic group of the five southern prefectures. It joined with GUNT (q.v.) forces fighting against Hissein Habré and was a recipient of aid from Libya. FAT began to disintegrate during 1982 as a result of defeats inflicted by Habré's FAN (q.v.). Most remaining soldiers accepted integration into FAN or resumed their insurgency as codos.

Chadian National Armed Forces (Forces Armées Nationales Tchadiennes--FANT)

The army of the central government since January 1983, when pro-Habré forces were merged. Consisting of about 10,000 soldiers at that time, it swelled with the assimilation of former FAT (q.v.) and codos rebels from the south and, in 1986, with the addition of GUNT (q.v.) soldiers who had turned against their Libyan allies. Freshly outfitted by France and the United States, FANT drove Libyan troops from their bases in northern Chad in a series of victories in 1987.

Codos

see Commandos.

Commandos (codos)

Southern guerrilla groups, active from 1983 to 1986, that resisted domination of their region by Habré's army. Many were veterans of the government army of the 1970s or Kamougué's FAT (q.v.). Totaling as many as 15,000, they operated independently under such names as "Red Codos," "Thunder Red Codos," "Coconut Palms," "Hope," and "Green Eagles." The Red Codos under Colonel Alphonse Kotiga were the most effective. Kotiga exercised some influence over the other groups and was instrumental in persuading them to abandon their insurgency by promises of rewards and rehabilitation. About 1,500 had been assimilated into FANT (q.v.) as of 1986.

Democratic Revolutionary Council (Conseil Démocratique Révolutionnaire--CDR)

Members were Chadians of Arab origin, most originating in Ouaddaï Prefecture or Batha Prefecture, with close ties to Libya and receptive to some of the ideological precepts of Muammar Qadhafi. After the death of its founder, Acyl Ahmat, the CDR was headed by Acheikh ibn Oumar. The most pro-Libyan faction in GUNT (q.v.), it fought to prevent the defection of FAP (q.v.) units from Libya in 1986. Believed to number up to 3,000 at its peak in the early 1980s, the CDR dwindled to fewer than 1,000 adherents before it was battered by FANT (q.v.) attacks in 1987.

FAN

see Armed Forces of the North.

FANT

see Chadian National Armed Forces.

FAO

see Western Armed Forces.

FAP

see People's Armed Forces.

FAT

see Chadian Armed Forces.

First Liberation Army of FROLINAT

Operated in eastern Chad as one of the original armies of the FROLINAT insurgency under General Mohamed Baghlani. After Baghlani's death in 1977, its personnel gravitated to the First Volcan Army of Adoum Dana or Acyl Ahmat's New Volcan (see Volcan Forces). The First Liberation Army reemerged under Mahamat Abba Said in 1984, joining the GUNT (q.v.) coalition against Habré, but was one of the factions disapproving dependence on Libya.

FROLINAT

see National Liberation Front of Chad.

GUNT

see Transitional Government of National Unity.

MPLT

see Third Liberation Army of FROLINAT.

National Liberation Army (Armée Nationale de Libération--ANL)

The military wing of the GUNT coalition under Goukouni that had been formally constituted in October 1982 (see Transitional Government of National Unity).

National Liberation Front of Chad (Front de Libération Nationale du Tchad--FROLINAT)

See First Libeartion Army of FROLINAT, Second Liberation Army of FROLINAT, and Third Liberation Army of FROLINAT.

People's Armed Forces (Forces Armées Populaires--FAP)

Composed of followers of Goukouni after the schism with Habré in 1976. With an ethnic base in the Teda clan of the Toubou from the Tibesti area of northern Chad, the force was armed by Libya and formed the largest component of the GUNT (q.v.) coalition army opposing Habré's rule. FAP troops rebelled against their Libyan allies in the latter part of 1986. Many of them were subsequently integrated into the national army, FANT (q.v.), and participated in the 1987 attempt to drive Libya out of Chadian territory.

Popular Movement for the Liberation of Chad (Mouvement Populaire pour la Libération du Tchad--MPLT)

see Western Armed Forces.

Second Liberation Army of FROLINAT

One of the original groups in rebellion against the regime of François Tombalbaye. The Second Liberation Army was composed of the Toubou active in Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti Prefecture, first under Goukouni's command and later under Habré's command. Renamed the Command Council of the Armed Forces of the North (Conseil de Commandement des Forces Armées du Nord--CCFAN), it was in a bitter struggle with the First Liberation Army in the early 1970s. After the rift between Habré and Goukouni in 1976, Habré's followers adopted the name of Armed Forces of the North (Forces Armées de Nord--FAN), and Goukouni's followers adopted the name of People's Armed Forces (Forces Armées Populaires FAP).

Third Liberation Army of FROLINAT

A small group from among the Kanembu people of western Chad, the Third Liberation Army splintered off from FAP (q.v.) in 1977; initially headed by Aboubaker Abderrahmane, it later became known as the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Chad (Movement Populaire pour la Libération du Tchad--MPLT). In a subsequent split, part of the MPLT became the Western Armed Forces (q.v.).

Transitional Government of National Unity (Gouvernement d'Union Nationale de Transition--GUNT)

A coalition of factions occupying the north with the aid of Libya, GUNT formed the principal opposition to Habré after 1981. Its component factions (q.v.) included initially FAP, FAT, the CDR, the FAO, and Volcan Forces. The National Liberation Army (Armée Nationale de Libération--ANL) was formally constituted as the military arm of GUNT in October 1982. Although Goukouni served as commander in chief, the various GUNT military factions remained as distinct units under their individual commanders. In general usage, the term GUNT continued to be used to refer to the northern rebel army. After Goukouni's FAP mutinied against Libyan domination in 1986 and Goukouni was removed as head of GUNT, the remaining GUNT contingents under the CDR's Acheikh ibn Oumar were sometimes referred to as "Neo-GUNT" or "GUNT/CDR."

Volcan Forces

The First Liberation Army of FROLINAT (q.v.) split up in 1977 into two Volcan (volcano) armies. The First Volcan Army of Adoum Dana was an ethnic Arab force receiving support from Sudan. It was absorbed into GUNT (q.v.) in 1981 and fought against Habré. New Volcan, the predecessor of the CDR (q.v.), was commanded by Acyl Ahmat, a protégé of Libya. Acyl aligned his followers with Goukouni against Habré in 1979. Although initially among the smallest elements (400 to 500 men), New Volcan constituted a corps of shock troops who were among the most resolute fighters in GUNT.

Western Armed Forces (Forces Armées Occidentales--FAO)

An offshoot of the MPLT (q.v.), the FAO recruited its forces mainly among the Kanembu group located along the shores of Lake Chad and enjoyed support from some political elements in Nigeria. Initially part of GUNT (q.v.), the FAO had reportedly divided into pro- and anti-Goukouni factions. Its leader, Moussa Medela, rejected Acheikh ibn Oumar as head of GUNT after Goukouni was deposed at the close of 1986.

*          *          *

Additional background on the rivalry between the numerous armed factions in Chad during the 1970s and early 1980s can be found in Virginia M. Thompson and Richard Adloff's Conflict in Chad and in Why Chad?, a monograph by Alex Rondos in the CSIS Africa Notes series. Each of the groups, together with its antecedents, is briefly sketched in Peut-on encore sauver le Tchad? by Michel N'Gangbet. Samuel Decalo also provides sketches of most factions in Historical Dictionary of Chad. (For further information and complete citations, see Bibliography.)