Chad’s former Prime Minister and prominent opposition leader Succes Masra has been placed in provisional detention nearly a week after his arrest on charges of inciting hatred, his legal team confirmed on Wednesday.
Masra, who briefly served as prime minister from January to May 2024, was detained on May 16 following accusations linking him to recent deadly unrest in the country’s southwest. He is facing multiple charges, including inciting revolt, forming and aiding armed groups, complicity in murder, and arson.
His arrest came two days after violent clashes in the Mandakao area of Logone-Occidental left at least 42 people dead, primarily women and children. Local officials believe the violence stemmed from longstanding tensions between nomadic Fulani herders and Ngambaye farmers over land use boundaries.
Masra, an ethnic Ngambaye from Chad’s southern region, has significant support among communities that have long alleged marginalization by the predominantly Muslim government led by President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno. The south is largely Christian and animist.
The 41-year-old economist, trained in France and Cameroon, challenged Déby in last year’s presidential election, officially receiving 18.5% of the vote compared to Déby’s 61.3%. However, Masra rejected the results and declared himself the true winner.
Initially a vocal critic of the ruling regime, Masra was appointed prime minister just months before the May 2024 vote — a move some viewed as an attempt to defuse opposition. His arrest now adds to growing political tensions in the country as regional and ethnic grievances resurface.