Chad’s former dictator Hissene Habre dies of COVID-19 at 79

Published August 24, 2021 5:41 AM

By BABACAR DIONE
Associated Press

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Senegalese officials say that Chad’s former dictator Hissene Habre has died at the age of 79 of COVID-19 in Senegal. Habre was convicted of crimes against humanity in 2016 by a special African court set up in Senegal after the former president spent decades in luxurious exile. Human rights activists say Chad was a ruthless, one-party state under Habre’s rule. A fearsome security service headed by members of Habre’s Gorane ethnic group was placed in every village, documenting even the slightest transgressions against the regime. A truth commission appointed shortly after Habre fell from power concluded that his government oversaw 40,000 killings.

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