Fresh clashes erupt in Ivory Coast's Abidjan | Florida Statesman

Fresh clashes erupt in Ivory Coast's Abidjan

Channel News Asia Saturday 26th February, 2011

ABIDJAN : Heavy-weapon gunfire erupted again Saturday in Ivory Coast's commercial capital Abidjan where forces loyal to rival claimants for the presidency have been fighting, witnesses said.The gunfire came from the northern Abobo area that is a stronghold of Alassane Ouattara, internationally recognised to have won the November 28 election although incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refuses to step down.It follows deadly clashes earlier this week in the area, named PK-18, from where Gbagbo's camp says "rebels" allied with Ouattara are operating, a charge that has been denied.Witnesses said the gunfire resumed in the early afternoon after the shooting stopped Friday morning, although residents continued to flee Saturday."The neighbourhood is empty," one resident told AFP, adding that families were l...

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