The Latest Breaking News from Chad

Senegalese and Chadian leaders say the ousting of French troops from their territories was their sovereign decision, rejecting remarks from French President Emmanuel Macron that suggested otherwise

President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday faced an angry backlash from France's remaining allies in West Africa and accusations at home of showing a neo-colonialist attitude after lamenting that African countries "forgot to say thank you" for France's decade-long military deployment to fight an Islamist insurgency.

Opposition parties urge Chadians to boycott the vote, calling it a sham aimed at entrenching the ruling party’s power.

Chadian authorities were on Friday in full control of the Faya-Largeau base after French military chiefs officially handed over the northern compound – marking another step in France’s complete withdrawal from Chad.

French soldiers have been asked to leave Chad by 31 January, sources close to the government in Paris say – a deadline that RFI was able to confirm with Chadian authorities.

Paris’s influence on the continent faces the biggest challenge in decades

A wave of African countries is pushing the former coloniser back, but Senegal is the only one without military leaders.

For over six decades, Chad was a crucial ally to French and US forces in their counter-insurgency operations in the Sahel. But both lost influence because of repeated mistakes.

France's military presence in Chad has ended following the departure of two combat jets and a tanker aeroplane from the capital N'Djamena.