Chad’s junta and rebel groups open peace talks in Qatar

By LUJAIN JO
Associated Press

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Chad’s ruling military council and representatives of rebel forces are meeting for the formal opening of peace talks in Qatar. The Sunday meetings are part of a broader diplomatic effort to halt decades of fighting and instability in the vast, faction-ridden nation. The negotiations at a hotel in Doha aim to pave the way for the head of the junta, Gen. Mahamat Idriss Deby, to lead the strategic central African country toward new elections in 18 months. Delegations from a constellation of armed opposition groups gathered with Qatari and African officials for a ceremony to mark the official start of the talks, followed by substantive negotiations between the Chadian sides behind closed doors.