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| Ivory Coast |
The UN pulled out some of its own staff following attacks on its headquarters in Abidjan and the wounding of four peacekeepers by supporters of Laurent Gbagbo, the outgoing president, whose refusal to concede election defeat has reignited civil war.
France deployed an additional 300 troops to its former colony, bringing the total number there to 1,400, prompting appeals by supporters of Mr Gbagbo for mass mobilisation to resist the “occupying force”.
The main mission of the force is to organise the protection and evacuation of about 1,650 foreigners, half of them French, who have sought refuge in a military camp amid heavy fighting around the presidency, state television, and several military camps.
Aid workers described a desperate situation in which residents of what was once west Africa’s most cosmopolitan city, cowered behind closed doors, running out of food, water and without electricity as fighting stretched into a fourth day and armed thugs took advantage of the meltdown to loot and kill.
Mr Gbagbo, whose government has been subject to months of international sanctions, was hanging on to the vestiges of power despite appeals from around the world for him to spare the country further bloodshed by standing down.
The former history professor and president of 10 years has looked increasingly isolated following the defection of many generals, and the defeat of his army elsewhere in the country.
However, regional and western officials fear the populist incumbent has decided to make a stand in order to complicate the task of his bitter rival, Alassane Ouattara, should he win.
An inconclusive battle in Abidjan could lead to a more generalised breakdown in law and order, particularly if forces allied to Mr Ouattara squander the legitimacy he won in elections by committing atrocities.
Officials with Mr Ouattara, a former prime minister and senior International Monetary Fund official who won run-off elections against Mr Gbagbo last November, according to UN certified results, have been promising since Friday that the game would be up in a matter of hours.
However, the battle for Abidjan is proving tougher than they anticipated following the success of last week’s offensive, which saw former rebels advance across the country from their stronghold in the north, facing little resistance.
Having recaptured state television, some of Mr Gbagbo’s lieutenants sought to mobilise support from youth militias rearmed in recent days, and rally those elements of the army that have not deserted.
Mr Gbagbo is receiving assistance from private Israeli security advisers, according to regional officials, and retains the loyalty of well-equipped presidential guards numbering several thousand.
His whereabouts at the weekend were uncertain. He is believed to be either holed up in the presidency, under fire but with a bunker at his disposal, or has retreated with his inner circle to a well fortified military base nearby.
Both were under attack by pro-Ouattara forces who were assembling on the outskirts of Abidjan, in anticipation of a “final push”.
Mr Ouattara’s political circumstances have been complicated by reports of a large scale massacre in the town of Duekoue in the west, which prompted Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, to appeal to him to rein in his forces.
Duekoue was one of the first big centres to fall to forces allied to Mr Ouattara last week.
A team of UN investigators said at least 330 people had been killed there, 220 of them at the hands of traditional warriors fighting on Mr Ouattara’s side, and a further 100 by militias allied to Mr Gbagbo. In a statement Mr Ouattara denied that his forces were involved.
Sources: http://www.ft.com
