Pro-Ouattara forces storm into Gbagbo's residence
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Gbagbo's rejection of terms of surrender was considered a tactic of playing for time, sparing an outcry from both the FRCI and the European Union, which on Wednesday slapped new sanctions on Gbagbo's regime, including a ban on bonds and loans in connection with it.
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Pro-Ouattara forces in Cote d'Ivoire affirmed on Wednesday that they had launched an assault on the residence of embattled Cote d'Ivoire president Laurent Gbagbo.[Xinhua] |
Hundreds of people were reportedly killed amid fighting over the control of the strategic town between the rival forces. It was soon taken by the FRCI in its military blitz sweeping across the country.
The Republican Forces escalated the military advances in the past week, taking a series of important towns before reaching Abidjan on Thursday.
But the offensive faltered before resistance put up by Gbagbo's elite special forces and the Republican Guard, who regained control of the state television in Abidjan after counter- offensives.
On Monday, the French Licorne troops and the UN mission in Cote d'Ivoire (ONUCI) bombarded Gbagbo's last bastions in the city, citing a recent UN resolution to protect civilian population from attacks by Gbagbo's forces.
French and ONUCI helicopters fired at the arsenals of the pro- Gbagbo forces, detonating explosions to destroy heavy weaponry, including artillery and armored vehicles.
The French Licorne troops deployed in Cote d'Ivoire has increased to 1,650 after the recent reinforcement. ONUCI has at least 9,800 personnel in the warring West African country.
The ongoing war is the second in the country since 2002, when the country was divided into Gbagbo's south and the north controlled by the ex-rebel New Forces, the backbone of the newly formed FRCI.
Last year's elections were expected to end the long-standing division, but the power struggle over the top post unleashed another all-out war.
According to the latest information, up to 1,500 people have been killed in the election-induced violence and more than 1 million people have fled their homes, with many taking shelter in neighboring Liberia and Guinea.
Massive evacuations of foreigners from the country were reported in the past week, while the French government accused Gbagbo's men of abducting several foreigners including French nationals.
Cote d'Ivoire, the world's top cocoa producer, won independence from France in 1960. There are an estimated 20,000 French nationals in the country.
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