President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday described the death of his Chadian counterpart, Idriss Deby, as a huge setback in the fight against terrorists in the Lake Chad Basin.
Deby died from injuries sustained during clashes with rebels in the North-Central African nations on Tuesday.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, President Buhari described the late Deby as a gallant soldier.
He said the Chadian leader’s death would create a big vacuum in the efforts to jointly confront the Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province terrorists.
The President said: “I’m deeply shocked and devastated by the sudden death of Idriss Deby on the battlefront to defend the sovereignty of his country.
“The late Deby had played a very active role in our regional joint collaboration in the military campaign against the Boko Haram terrorists
“He (Deby) is a friend of Nigeria who had enthusiastically lent his hand in our efforts to defeat the murderous Boko Haram terrorists that have posed grave security challenges not only for Nigeria, but also our African neighbours, particularly Chad, Cameroon, and Niger Republic.”
