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By Jia Cheng Fierce battles continued to erupt in Cote d'Ivoire's capital Abidjan Thursday, after Japan's ambassador was rescued overnight from fierce battles involving fighters for elected president Alassane Ouattara. Forces loyal to Ouattara surrounded the residence of Laurent Gbagbo following sporadic clashes between the two sides overnight. Reports indicated that the sound of gunfire could be heard around the presidential palace and Gbagbo's residence. The home of Japanese Ambassador Yoshifumi Okamura was surrounded as Gbagbo's fighters used the building to launch rockets and cannon fire, forcing the ambassador and a dozen people to hide behind a bulletproof door. Okamura and his aides were eventually evacuated by French helicopters and taken to a French military camp at Port-Bouet, south of Abidjan. Israel has also asked French forces to extract its diplomats from the conflict-torn city, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Thursday. A power struggle has resulted in ongoing fighting between Ouattara and Gbagbo, who has refused to concede defeat. According to AFP, French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet said the United Nations mission in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) has around 2,250 people in the capital, out of a total of 10,000 in Cote d'Ivoire. Ouattara's tactical groups consist of around 2,000 men, including about 200 at his residence. Longuet added that the besieged Gbagbo has fewer than 1,000 men in Abidjan. Xu Weizhong, deputy director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times that the civil war in Cote d'Ivoire reflects the deep-seated problems regarding tribal and religious conflicts. Negotiations and a political reconciliation would be the best solutions to the problem, he said. The siege came a day after the breakdown of negotiations led by the UN and France to secure Gbagbo's departure. |
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