Cote d'Ivoire's political impasse ends, Gbagbo detained
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Cote d'Ivoire's months-long political deadlock ended on Monday following the detention of Laurent Gbagbo and his wife. Legal proceedings against the ex-leader and his allies will follow, said Alassane Ouattara, the internationally recognized president.
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Cote d'Ivoire's incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and his wife were detained on Monday in a French-led military assault at his residence in Abidjan and taken to the Golf Hotel, the base of the West Africa country's pro-Ouattara forces. [Chinamews.com] |
French troops deployed in Cote d'Ivoire sent helicopters and armored vehicles on Monday morning in the decisive swoop upon Gbagbo's last bastion in Cote d'Ivoire's economic capital.
Both French ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire and Ouattara's spokesperson Affoussy Bamba have confirmed the arrest of the 65-year-old ex-leader.
Ouattara's prime minister Guillaume Soro described the detention of Gbagbo as the end of a nightmare, confirming that Ouattara's forces had made the capture.
Cote d'Ivoire's envoy to the United Nations Youssoufou Bamba said hours after the detention that Gbagbo was "alive and well" and will be brought to justice for the crimes he has committed.
He said Gbagbo had been taken to the Golf Hotel, the headquarters of the pro-Ouattara forces in the country.
In his TV address, Ouattara also said a commission of truth and reconciliation will be created to look into the alleged killings of civilians by both sides during the power struggle.
He added that all measures are in place to protect Gbagbo.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday welcomed the "decisive turn of events" in Cote d'Ivoire.
Obama called for Gbagbo's rival Ouattara, who is widely recognized as the winner in the Nov. 28 presidential runoff, to begin now "the hard work of reconciliation and rebuilding."
Obama described Gbagbo's detention as "a victory for the democratic will of the Ivorian people, who have suffered for far too long through the instability that followed their election."
However, Ivan Simonovic, the UN assistant secretary-general for human rights, said here Monday that the Ivorian city of Abidjan has been suffering from a lack of security forces on the ground.
"The current problem of Abidjan is a security vacuum," he told reporters. "Most police and gendarmerie are not at their places and until today we have had a number of cases of looting, of raping, of murders, in the area of Abidjan controlled by either sides to the conflict."
After the presidential run-off held on Nov. 28 last year, Ouattara was declared winner by the electoral commission, but the result was annulled by the Constitutional Council, which instead gave victory to Gbagbo.
Ouattara has the support of the international community including the United Nations, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States and the European Union, but Gbagbo defied international pressure and refused to cede power.
Both swore themselves in as president of the country, and formed their respective government headed by a prime minister.
The army loyal to Gbagbo had been controlling the south of the country, including Abidjan, since the 2002-2003 civil war, against the north taken by the ex-rebel New Forces, which is now allied with Ouattara and acting as the backbone of the newly formed Republican Forces.
The pro-Ouattara forces launched the southward military campaign in December last year in a bid to dislodge Gbagbo from power. The forces have taken a number of towns, before seizing the capital Yamoussoukro, the strategic port town of San Pedro, and the main city of Abidjan.
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