NeThe United Nations peacekeeping mission in Côte d'Ivoire reported
today that it has received telephone calls from the heads of forces
loyal to former leader Laurent Gbagbo stating that their soldiers have
been instructed to stop fighting and hand in their weapons to the UN.
The UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) said the calls came from
General Philippe Mangou, the chief-of-staff of the Defence and
Security Forces, General Thiape Kassarate Edouard, the commander of
the National Gendarmerie and General Bruno Dogbo Blé, the commander of
the Republican Guard.
Troops loyal to Mr. Gbagbo, the former president who refused to step
down after losing the election in November to opposition leader
Alassane Ouattara, have been engaged in fierce fighting with forces
loyal to Mr. Ouattara, who have in recent weeks stepped up their
offensive to force the ex-leader out of power. Mr. Ouattara is the
internationally recognised President of Côte d'Ivoire.
"UNOCI has given orders to its troops to receive arms wherever they
are handed in and to offer protection to disarmed FDSCI [Defence and
Security Forces of Côte d'Ivoire] elements, including the Special
Forces," the UN mission said in a press release.
Meanwhile, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(OCHA) reported that the situation in Abidjan, the West African
country's commercial capital and the scene of the some fiercest
fighting over the past week, is alarming.
Most of the hospitals are not functioning and ambulances have been
fired on when they tried to enter the city, according to OCHA.
Valerie Amos, the UN Under-Secretary for Humanitarian Affairs, who is
visiting Côte d'Ivoire, reported that internally displaced persons
(IDPs) in the western town of Duékoué, the scene of an alleged
massacre of civilians last week, were "fearful and traumatized."
Ms. Amos, who is also the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator and head of
OCHA, stressed the need for physical protection for those affected and
the distribution of sufficient humanitarian aid. Access to many
civilians in need has, however, been severely restricted or completely
cut off since mid-February when the fighting intensified, according to
OCHA.
The Emergency Relief Coordinator was accompanied on the visit to
Duékoué yesterday by the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights,
Ivan Simonovic, who went to the town to look into the mass killings
that allegedly took place last Wednesday.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) voiced alarm over the impact of the
violence in Côte d'Ivoire on children.
"We are especially troubled by reports that children are among the
victims of a mass killing there," said Anthony Lake, the UNICEF
Executive Director. "And children continue to be recruited by armed
forces on all sides of the conflict – a grave violation of their
rights which jeopardizes not only their future but also the chances
for achieving sustainable peace in Cote d'Ivoire."
"We fear outbreaks of disease if we and other agencies cannot reach
the thousands of internally displaced families," added Mr. Lake.
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