N’DJAMENA — Around 100 people have died in clashes between gold miners in northern Chad,
Defense Minister General Daoud Yaya Brahim said on Monday.
اضافة اعلان
Violence broke out on May 23 at Kouri Bougoudi near
the Libyan border, sparked by a “mundane dispute between two people which
degenerated”, he said, adding that the toll was “around 100 dead and at least
40 wounded.”
The clashes occurred in the rugged Tibesti Mountains
in the central Sahara, some 1,000km (600 miles) from the Chadian capital
N’Djamena.
The clashes were between Mauritanians and Libyans,
the minister said. He spoke to AFP by phone from the area, where he said he was
with a large military contingent sent to help restore order. “This isn’t the
first time that there’s been violence among gold miners in the region, and we
have decided to suspend all gold mining at Kouri until further notice,” he
said, adding that “the great majority (of mines in the area) are illegal.”
The incident was first announced on Wednesday, when
Communications Minister Abderaman Koulamallah said in a statement there had
been “loss of human life and several wounded,” but gave no further details.
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