Chadian President Idriss Déby, in power for 30 years, died Tuesday from injuries received while commanding his army in fighting.
For Antoine Glaser, specialist in the geopolitics of Africa, the warlord was truly "the man of France in the very destabilized region" that is the Sahel.
ANALYSIS
He presented himself as a "warrior", he died as a warrior: Idriss Déby, in power for 30 years in Chad, succumbed on Tuesday to his wounds received in combat against rebels in the north of this country, near Libya .
The head of state was 68 years old and had just been re-elected for a sixth term at the head of his country.
It is his son who will take over the interim, supported by the army.
Internationally, his disappearance worries in any case his allies, such as France, assures Antoine Glaser, a major specialist in Africa joined on Tuesday by Europe 1.
Key man in the region
Idriss Déby was indeed a player in the war in the Sahel and a key partner for the West in an area destabilized by rebel groups.
"He was really the man of France in the region", summarizes the specialist journalist.
"He had the only seasoned troops in support of Operation Serval and then Barkhane. Idriss Déby almost occupied the power of divine right in Chad, so his disappearance is not simply the disappearance of a president, but also and above all the disappearance of someone who completely mastered the codes with all his neighbors, with whom he had privileged relations. "
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Sahel: why the death of Chadian President Déby worries France
In fact, the disappearance of this head of state is "a blow to Macron's entire military strategy in the region", observes Antoine Glaser, co-author with Pascal Airault
of Macron's African Trap
, a decryption book published last month at Fayard editions.
A greater intervention from France?
The journalist thus anticipates the concrete consequences of this disappearance, in particular for the French presence in the region, through Operation Barkhane.
"He announced in February that he would like France to no longer be on the front line in this operation," he recalls.
"His death will undoubtedly force France to put its hands in the grease again so that Chad does not collapse."
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How did Paris react to this disappearance of this close ally in Africa?
"France is losing a courageous friend," said a statement from the Elysee Palace released Tuesday afternoon.
Paris recalls "its attachment to the stability and territorial integrity of Chad".
A challenge after the death of the "warrior" Déby?