Ivory Coast: Gunmen Kill Soldiers Loyal to Laurent Gbagbo

Photo: AP

South African police officers stand guard around a car transporting President Jacob Zuma, as he leaves following a meeting with Ivory Coast's internationally-recognized president, Alassane Ouattara, at the Golf Hotel in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, February 22, 2011

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Authorities in Ivory Coast say gunmen have shot and killed at least three soldiers loyal to incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo, in the capital, Abidjan.

The violence erupted Tuesday, in a neighborhood that supports Alassane Ouattara, the United Nations certified winner of November's presidential election.

The shooting in Abobo occurred on the same day Ouattara said the current effort to resolve the country's political crisis is a "last resort."

Ouattara met in Abidjan with four African presidents from a panel appointed by the African Union to settle the crisis.

The AU leaders met on Monday with Mr. Gbagbo, who has resisted intense pressure to cede power to Ouattara.

The AU mission includes the presidents of South Africa, Chad, Mauritania and Tanzania.

Ouattara's supporters have called for an Egypt-style revolution to force out the incumbent president.

International and regional sanctions against Mr. Gbagbo are driving down Ivory Coast's economy. On Tuesday, Ouattara extended a ban on cocoa imports to March 15. The ban is aimed at pressuring Gbagbo to relinquish power.