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March 22, 2011

Ivory Coast: Thousands Offer To Join Army As Fears Of Civil War Grow 
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Fears of impending civil war in the Ivory Coast intensified Monday as
thousands of young men and a few women gathered at the army's
headquarters offering to enlist in an effort to defend incumbent
President Laurent Gbagbo. On Saturday, pro-Gbagbo leader, Charles Blé
Goudé, called on some 10,000 Ivorians to "liberate" the country. Blé
Goudé has been under international sanctions since 2006 for inciting
violence, extrajudicial killings, rape and pillage in the Ivory Coast
and promoting attacks against U.N. peacekeepers. The Ivory Coast has
been in political turmoil since presidential elections in November
determined that Alassane Ouattara had defeated Gbagbo. Last week, forces
loyal to Gbagbo shelled a market in the economic capital city of
Abidjan, killing at least 25 people.



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