Twenty-thousand people in N'Djamena demonstrated in support of Chad's new rulers last week (16 April) -- a few days after an army coup had toppled the civilian government, killing President Tombalbaye.

Many of the marchers, students and women among them, carried placards condemning "The Fascist Tombalbaye Regime" and praising the country's armed forces.

On the same day as the march, Chad's nine-man Superior Military Council appointed 43-year-old General Folix Mallanum, a veteran of the French colonial campaigns, as the country's new leader. Brigadier General Odingar, who played a key role in the army coup, is among the members of the ruling military council.

First actions by the council included lifting the post-coup curfew holding out the possibility of settlement with naval tribes in the north of the country, and announcing that they would make chad a non-aligned country.