London, February 10: United Nations radio programs have been taken off the air in Ivory Coast as the country’s political standoff over its presidential election remains unresolved.
The frequencies assigned to the UN Mission in Ivory Coast (MINUCI) have been withdrawn by President Laurent Gbagbo, who accuses the world body of supporting his electoral rival Alassane Ouattara.
Despite mounting pressure, Gbagbo has so far refused to hand over presidency to Ouattara, who has been internationally recognized as the winner of the November presidential polls.
Gbagbo has asked for the withdrawal of UN troops stationed in Ivory Coast. About 800 UN soldiers guard the Golf Hotel where Ouattara has resided since the results of the vote was announced.
On Tuesday, forces loyal to Gbagbo clashed with supporters of Ouattara in Abidjan, further brushing off the prospects of a peaceful solution to the country’s political crisis in any near future.
This is while the UN Security Council has ratified the deployment another 2,000 troops to Ivory Coast, bringing the total of international soldiers stationed there to 11,500.
On Wednesday, a fire broke out at the treasury building in the city of Abidjan, destroying a large number of documents.
Violence has claimed the lives of 271 people since the breakout of post-poll violence in mid-December, according to the United Nations.
The UN has said that the death toll could be much higher with reports of at least two mass graves. However, masked pro-Gbagbo gunmen have prevented investigators from accessing the sites.
Over the past few months, the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have made serious efforts in vain to resolve the deadlock peacefully. ECOWAS has threatened to resort to a military option to remove a defiant Gbagbo.
——–Agencies