N'DJAMENA — The son of Chad's slain leader Idriss Deby took over as president and armed forces commander on Wednesday as rebel forces threatened to march on the capital, deepening the turmoil in a country vital to international efforts to combat militants in Africa.
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The political opposition also denounced the military's takeover of control, calling the move a
coup d'etat and rejecting its plan for a transition.
Labor unions called on workers to go on strike.
Deby, 68, was killed on Monday on the frontline in a battle against fighters of the Libyan-based
Front for Change and Concord in Chad (FACT), a rebel group formed by dissident army officers.
His death shocked the nation and raised concerns among Western allies, notably France and the United States, who had counted on him as an ally in their fight against militant groups including Daesh and Boko Haram.
Deby had been in power since 1990 and had just been declared winner of a presidential election that would have given him a sixth term in office. His son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was named interim president by a transitional council of military officers just after news of his death was announced.
General Deby, 37, moved to consolidate his position on Wednesday, with the council issuing a new charter in place of the country's constitution granting him the functions of president and also naming him as head of the armed forces.
The council's vice-president, Djimadoum Tirayna, had said earlier that the army wanted to return power to a civilian government and hold free and democratic elections in 18 months.
He reiterated that on Wednesday, saying in a statement the military was "in no way seeking to seize power." But the FACT rebels rejected the military's plan and said they would press on with their offensive.
"Chad is not a monarchy. There can be no dynastic devolution of power in our country," FACT said in a statement.
The rebel forces poured over the vast country's northern border last weekend.
A spokesman for the group — which is not linked to militants — said they were now in Kanem region about 200-300km north of N'Djamena and that their aim was to bring democracy to Chad after years of authoritarian rule by Deby.
FACT claimed responsibility for the injuries that killed Deby on Monday. An ex-army officer who often joined soldiers on the battlefront, Deby was visiting troops who had held up the rebel advance in intense fighting over the weekend.
He was wounded by gunfire in the village of Mele near the town of Nokou, more than 300km north of N’Djamena, and evacuated to the capital where he later died, said the FACT spokesman, who requested anonymity.
"We don't want to seize power to hold power. Our objective is for democratic transitions to be a reality," he said. He said the group was preparing to march on N'Djamena to "free the people from a system that is undemocratic".
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