YAOUNDE, March 21 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from a Sudanese drone strike that hit the Chadian border town of Tine on Wednesday has risen to 20, authorities said on Saturday.
Ten others sustained injuries in the attack and are being treated at a hospital in the Chadian city of Abeche, the country's Ministry of the Armed Forces, Veterans Affairs and War Victims said in a statement on Saturday.
The statement said the information was obtained during a visit to the border by a government delegation led by Issaka Malloua Djamouss, minister of the armed forces, veterans affairs and war victims.
The authorities expressed the government's solidarity and condolences to the victims and reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring public safety and strengthening defense measures along the borders.
"This is not the first time; it is the fourth time that Chad has been affected. This is the last time it will happen. No one will come to kill a Chadian," Ali Ahmat Aghabache, minister of public security and immigration, told reporters during the visit.
On Thursday, Chad's Minister of Communication and government spokesman Gassim Cherif Mahamat said the government had raised its military and security forces to a higher state of alert following the strike.
On Wednesday, Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno ordered the "complete closure" of the border following the deadly attack. The crossings between Sudan and Chad are vital commercial and humanitarian corridors for Darfur's population.
Chad shares a 1,300-km porous border with Sudan, which has been engulfed in conflict since 2023, when fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. ■