The central African country of Chad has expelled the German ambassador because of his “impolite attitude” and “lack of respect for diplomatic customs,” the government said late on Friday, in a move that was met with confusion in Berlin.

Chad’s decision was “motivated by the impolite attitude and the lack of respect for diplomatic customs by the German ambassador, as prescribed by the Vienna Convention,” a government spokesman said in a statement.

No further explanation was given, but according to local media reports, ambassador Jan-Christian Gordon Kricke’s criticism of the current transitional government might have been the reason for the move.

The German Foreign Office said the reasons for the ambassador’s expulsion were not clear, adding that it was in contact with the government in Chad.

Kricke was given 48 hours to leave the country.

He has been serving as Germany’s ambassador to Chad since 2021.

The oil-rich but impoverished country of 17 million in the Sahel region has been ruled by a transitional military government headed by President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno since April 2021.

Déby Itno took over after his father, long-time ruler Idriss Déby, was killed by rebels looking to overthrow his government.

Déby Itno had promised to hold democratic elections within a year and a half but they have repeatedly been postponed.

Last autumn, opposition demonstrations were bloodily put down.

Many diplomats in the country, which borders Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Sudan, sharply criticised the violence. (dpa/NAN)

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