Ivory Coast ceasefire called off
A promised ceasefire between government and rebels in Ivory Coast was called off today, leaving peace envoys locked in talks about what to do next, the Togolese foreign minister said.
Koffi Panou said the government was refusing to sign the document, arguing that rebels should disarm first.
Ivorian authorities “believe that their government is legitimate and should not be considered on the same levels of legitimacy as the rebels,” said Panou, speaking after talks with the Ivorian president, Laurent Gbagbo.
“For the moment, they will not sign. The ceasefire will not take place,” Panou said.
Envoys from six West African countries who met Gbagbo afterward locked themselves in closed-door talks in Abidjan, the former French colony’s commercial centre, trying to determine how to proceed. Some appeared to have given up hope.
“We came here with the best intentions, now it’s basically a problem for Ivory Coast. If they want outside support, they will have to invite us,” said Kwame Addo-Kufuor, Ghana’s defence minister and a member of the peace mission.
Panou said he planned to return to Togo tonight.
The collapse of the ceasefire, which the government and rebels had originally said they would sign last Friday, came as heavy gunfire broke out in the central rebel-held city of Bouake.
Government officials did not immediately comment. But Ivorian authorities have for days promised an all-out assault to retake the rebel-held north of the country.
