SUMMARY

The Darsalim and the Kibete are two ethnic groups living in eastern Chad. Ethnic groups in this region are sometimes divided along the lines of whether they have an "Arab" or an "African" identity. According to this distinction the Kibete are "Africans" and Darsalim "Arabs". Relations between the different ethnic groups in eastern Chad have traditionally been fairly friendly but in 2006 large-scale killings took place between "Africans" and "Arabs". Information on much of these killings was too scarce to be included in the UCDP-coding but details of a clash in November between the Kibete and Darsalim were more trustworthy. The upsurge in clashes in eastern Chad in 2006 has connections to the conflict in neighboring Darfur as for instance, militias crossed-over from Darfur and took part in many clashes. However, many of the root causes of the conflict, such as politicians using ethnicity as a way to gain power, are internal to Chad. Hence, the communal conflicts in eastern Chad have both internal and external causes.

The non-state conflict between the Darsalim and the Kibete is first included in UCDP data in 2006. In November that year, a week of heavy fighting led the conflict to cross the 25 battle-related deaths threshold.