Cote d’Ivoire Crisis

Author and Page information

  • by Anup Shah
  • This Page Created Thursday, April 07, 2011

This web page has the following sub-sections:

  1. Introduction
  2. More information

Introduction

Following elections in Cote d’Ivoire in October 2010, both President Laurent Gbagbo and opposition candidate, Alassane Ouattara, claimed victory. International observers agreed that the Ouattara had won, but Gbagbo refused to accept this.

Negotiations failed and while the world’s attention was elsewhere, the situation became volatile and violent outbursts turned into the country’s second civil war. Forces supporting Ouattara have swept through the country and Gbagbo’s position looks precarious while he remains defiant.

Displaced Ivorians queue for food at a UNHCR distribution site in Liberia (source)

At the same time, possibly a million people are thought to have fled their homes, about 100,000 of which have crossed over into neighboring Liberia.

Thousands of civilians have been killed in what observers have found to be mass human rights violations. There have also been reports of massacres and mass graves. UN personnel on the ground have been targeted. There are accusations of violence by both sides.

This situation had been brewing for a long time, and yet, the international community has been comparatively silent compared to how they have reacted to the situation in Libya.

This page presents news coverage from Inter Press Service on this crisis.

Back to top

More information

There are so many issues that this tragic event has caused that I can’t cover them on my own. However, below are a list of stories from Inter Press Service as they cover this event and its aftermath:

Liberia: 'Security Risk' at Ivory Coast Border Ahead of Elections

Monday, October 10, 2011

As Liberia gears up for Tuesday’s presidential and legislative elections, officials stationed near the border with Ivory Coast have expressed concern that insufficient border security - a problem highlighted by two recent cross-border attacks - could fuel electoral violence.

Cote D’Ivoire: Suspended Exports Dent Scrap Metal Dealers' Prospects

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Between now and 2012, the Côte d'Ivoire government plans to establish a scrap metal processing industry that will supply finished products to domestic and regional markets. It is unwelcome news for the country's existing scrap dealers.

Cote D'ivoire: Toxic Waste Victims Wait Years for Compensation

Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Thousands of victims affected by toxic waste dumping in 2006 in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire's commercial capital, still have not received the economic compensation they were promised.

Cote D’Ivoire: Disagreement Over Scope of ICC Investigation

Friday, July 15, 2011

Government and civil society in Côte d'Ivoire are divided over the scope of the investigations to be undertaken by the International Criminal Court into atrocities and serious violations of human rights committed during the post- electoral crisis.

Unicef Leads 'back To School' Initiative In Cote D'ivoire

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

When the five-month-old political standoff in Cote d'Ivoire came to an end in early April, the strife-torn West African nation was expected to return to normal - later than sooner.

Cote D'ivoire: Hesitant Steps Towards Normal Life

Thursday, April 21, 2011

The prime minister of Côte d'Ivoire, Guillaume Soro, held his first cabinet meeting away from the Golf Hotel on Tuesday. The meeting - at the Prime Minister's Office in the Plateau d'Abidjan - was symbolic, intended to signal a return to normal life in a city that endured heavy fighting between Mar. 30 and the fall of former president Laurent Gbagbo on Apr. 11.

Cote D'ivoire: Hesitant Steps Towards Normal Life

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

The prime minister of Côte d'Ivoire, Guillaume Soro, held his first cabinet meeting away from the Golf Hotel on Tuesday. The meeting - at the Prime Minister's Office in the Plateau d'Abidjan - was symbolic, intended to signal a return to normal life in a city that endured heavy fighting between Mar. 30 and the fall of former president Laurent Gbagbo on Apr. 11.

Cote D'ivoire: Gbagbo Being Held by Ouattara Forces

Monday, April 11, 2011

Cote d'Ivoire's Laurent Gbagbo has surrendered to the forces of presidential claimant Alassane Ouattara and is being held by them, the U.N. has said.

Manufacturing Côte D'ivoire's 'good Guy'

Friday, April 08, 2011

As Côte d'Ivoire's bloody leadership contest draws to a close and the surrender of Laurent Gbagbo, the incumbent president, seems imminent, a long list of atrocities and electoral irregularities mark the records of both him and his opponent, Alassane Ouattara.

U.S. Defends Role In Cote D'ivoire Crisis

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

As Cote d'Ivoire enters its fourth month of post-election violence with intensified fighting and bloodshed, the White House is defending its efforts thus far to shepherd a solution to the stalemate between incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara, the internationally-recognised winner of last fall's elections.

Côte D'ivoire On The Edge Of Chaos

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Forces of law and order have abandoned their posts in Abidjan, creating a vacuum which has rapidly filled with violence, looting and fear. Residents of Côte d'Ivoire's commercial capital are shut in their homes, doors closed against scenes of pillage and assault of civilians, while reports of intercommunal clashes in the west of the country complete the picture of a country descending into chaos.

Cote D'ivoire: Pro-Ouattara Forces Launch Palace Assault

Monday, April 04, 2011

Heavy fighting is continuing in Abidjan where forces loyal to Côte d'Ivoire's presidential rivals are battling for control of the country's main city.

Ouattara Forces Seize Cote D'ivoire Towns

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara, the internationally recognised winner of Cote d'Ivoire's presidential election, say they have seized control of another two central towns in their advance toward the country's capital.

Ouattara Forces Seize Cote D'ivoire Towns

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara, the internationally recognised winner of Cote d'Ivoire's presidential election, say they have seized control of another two central towns in their advance toward the country's capital.

Liberia-Cote D'ivoire: Border Villages Sharing The Little They Have

Monday, March 28, 2011

This Butuo man only knows one phrase in French: Viens manger. Come eat.

That's what they said to him years ago, when he was one of hundreds of thousands who fled to Côte d'Ivoire to escape the brutal 14-year civil war in Liberia.

Families Trapped In Cote D'ivoire

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

Armed men have blocked some 60 families without food or water from leaving a church in Cote d'Ivoire's commercial city, the U.N. says.

Cote D'ivoire: February Month of Action by African Union

Wednesday, February 02, 2011

A High Level Panel has been set up by the African Union to send a team of experts to Côte d'Ivoire and come up with a solution to the political impasse that would be binding on both incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and his rival for the presidency, Alassane Ouattara.

U.N. Fears Escalating Ethnic Clashes In Cote D'ivoire

Thursday, January 20, 2011

United Nations officials said they were 'gravely concerned' Wednesday that the current political deadlock over recent presidential elections in Cote d'Ivoire could ultimately lead to genocide, as both sides of the conflict consolidated their forces.

Pressure Builds To End Stalemate In Cote D'ivoire

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Ten days before the two-month deadline for a negotiated solution to Cote d'Ivoire's presidential deadlock comes due, pressure is mounting to end the stalemate in Abidjan, as observers pin the outcome of the power struggle on the future of the region as a whole.

U.N. Tight-Lipped On Use Of Military Force In Cote D'ivoire

Friday, January 07, 2011

As the continuing political stalemate threatens to unleash a civil war in Cote d'Ivoire, the United Nations is taking an increasingly aggressive stance in the widening standoff with the West African nation.

U.N. Deplores Escalating Violence In Cote D'ivoire

Thursday, December 23, 2010

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has reiterated his concern at the escalating violence in Cote d'Ivoire, where as many as 20 people were reportedly killed in clashes between security forces and opposition activists. '[Ban] is deeply concerned about the continuing political stalemate,' said spokesperson Farhan Haq. He called the violence a 'worrying turn'.

U.N. In Test Of Wills Over Cote D'ivoire Crisis

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

The United Nations is taking an unrelenting stand on the spreading constitutional crisis in Cote d'Ivoire, where two contenders - one victorious and the other vanquished - are battling it out for the country's presidency.

U.N. Deplores Escalating Violence In Cote D'ivoire

Friday, December 17, 2010

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reiterated his concern Thursday at the escalating violence in Cote d'Ivoire, where as many as 20 people were reportedly killed in clashes between security forces and opposition activists.

Back to top

Where next?

Other options

Author and Page Information

  • by Anup Shah
  • Created: Thursday, April 07, 2011

Back to top