Middle East 587
Conflict followed in the capital of Ndjamena at the end of November. The OAU com-
mittee on Chad convened on November 28 and issued a ceasefire proposal to be active
starting on December 15. Chadian President Oueddei (Malloum’s successor) signed
the agreement, but Habre, who was the focus of the Libyan attacks, refused. Oued-
dei’s forces responded with an attack on Habre’s forces in Ndjamena on December
6, and the Libyan forces joined them. Habre, most of his armed personnel, and about
10,000 supporters fled to Cameroon on December 14 and 15. The new coalition forces
of the Chadian President and Libyan forces moved into the capital on December 17.
Attempts at resolving the dispute thereafter at a Lagos conference held on December
23 and 24 ended in failure. The issue of Libya’s involvement in Chad (and other Afri-
can countries) did not lead to a convergence of opinions on how to proceed. Libya and
Chad decided to work on their own to achieve cooperation which led to a January 6,
1981, agreement proposing points where Libya and Chad would cooperate.
Coding changes: Start Date changed from July 2, 1977. End Date changed from
December 17, 1980.
MID#3633
Started in December 1980. See the narrative in the 220 France/620 Libya dyad dispute
list.
MID#3634
Dispute Number: 3634
Date(s): February 17, 1983 to December 21, 1984
Participants: 620 Libya/2 United States of America, 220 France, 483 Chad, 490
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Outcome (and Settlement): Unclear (Negotiated)
Fatalities: >999 deaths
Narrative: In 1982 the Armed Forces of the North (FAN), led by Hissene Habre, gained
control of Chad except for a small area in the north that was still controlled by the Gouk-
ouni Oueddei regime. Libya opposed the new regime in Chad, so it supported Oueddei
as he prepared to challenge the Chadian regime. On February 27, 1983, Libyan troops
along with anti-Habre Chadians grouped at the Chadian border. The next day represen-
tatives from the Chadian and Libyan governments met but failed to reach an agreement.
On March 17, Chad requested the UN Security Council to take action against
Libyan “aggression and occupation,” and on April 6, the Security Council instructed
Chad and Libya to work out their problems in the context of the UN Charter and the
Organization of African Unity Charter.
On April 11, 1983, the Libyan foreign secretary, Abdullah Obeidi, discussed Chad
with French officials in Paris. Although Oueddei’s government denied it, by late June
Chad was reporting direct contact with Libyan soldiers on the battlefield. Oueddei’s
troops advanced southward in June and July 1983 before being turned back by troops
loyal to Habre. They launched another drive south in August. The United States
responded by sending additional arms to Chad, increasing Airborne Warning and
Control System (AWACS) surveillance of Libya, and sending a US aircraft carrier