Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. Gbagbo Agrees to End Ivory Coast Political Stalemate VOA News 04 January 2011 Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, right, with Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga, left, Sierra Leone's President Ernest Bai Koroma, center, after offering Laurent Gbagbo an amnesty deal at the presidential palace in Abidjan, 03 Jan 2011 Photo: AP Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, right, with Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga, left, Sierra Leone's President Ernest Bai Koroma, center, after offering Laurent Gbagbo an amnesty deal at the presidential palace in Abidjan, 03 Jan 2011 The West African regional bloc ECOWAS says Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo has agreed to negotiate a "peaceful end" to the country's political crisis without any preconditions. The 15-nation bloc released a statement Tuesday that said Gbagbo's forces will lift a blockade around the Abidjan hotel where his political rival, Alassane Ouattara, has been holed up for weeks. The announcement came a few hours after ECOWAS head and Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan said the situation was deadlocked and would take time to resolve. Raid reported In another development, members of the Ivory Coast Democratic Party said security forces raided the headquarters Tuesday and accused them of hiding weapons. They say an unknown number of people were injured in the raid. The party is part of the coalition that supported Ouattara in the November presidential election. ECOWAS, the African Union and the United Nations all recognize results showing Ouattara as the winner of that election and have called on Gbagbo to step down The 15-member Economic Community of West African States has threatened to remove Gbagbo by force if he does not leave office. Ivory Coast Timeline: .