International pressure is growing on Ivory Coast incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo to cede power to opposition leader Alassane Ouattara after last month's disputed presidential election.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy says Mr Gbagbo must stand down by "the end of the week" or face EU sanctions.
Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has called for African nations to remove Mr Gbagbo by force if necessary.
Mr Gbagbo's refusal to stand down has sparked fears of renewed civil war.
The United Nations, Washington, African states and others say the election on 28 November was won by Mr Ouattara.
Mr Gbagbo insists the result was rigged by rebels who still hold the north after the civil war in 2002-03.
Ouattara supporters threatened to take to the streets, a day after gun battles in the main city, Abidjan, left at least 20 people dead.
However, the BBC's John James in Abidjan says the city is quiet, although many businesses are closed.
0 comments:
Post a Comment