The government in Chad announced the killing of 18 gunmen who attacked the presidential palace in the capital N'Djamena yesterday evening, Wednesday.

The Chadian government confirmed that the attack resulted in the death of an army soldier, noting that the situation is "under control" after what it described as an attempt to destabilize, following the hearing of heavy gunfire in the city center.

Government spokesman and Foreign Minister Abd al-Rahman Kalam Allah said - in a video clip broadcast on Facebook - that "the situation is completely under control, this attempt to destabilize has been completely eliminated." The spokesman added that an armed group of 24 gunmen were all killed or wounded, noting that the toll among the attackers was "18 dead and six wounded", while among the government forces, one soldier was killed and three wounded, one of them seriously.

Earlier on Wednesday evening, security sources said that gunmen launched an attack inside the presidential palace, but the presidential guard was able to control them, as heavy gunfire was heard near the presidential palace in central N'Djamena.