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Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo is facing renewed international pressure to quit or "face force", as thousands of Ivorians flee the chaos of their homeland. In a sign of mounting determination to force Mr Gbagbo out, three leaders of the West African regional bloc Ecowas are due to fly to Ivory Coast on Tuesday. The presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cap Vert will tell Mr Gbagbo "that he must step down as quickly as possible or face legitimate military force". Ecowas president James Victor Gbeho said the group was making "an ultimate gesture" to Mr Gbagbo to urge him...

The United States says it is talking with France and West African states about "augmenting" the U.N. peacekeeping force in Ivory Coast as the political crisis there persists. Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo continues to resist calls to step down in favor of the internationally recognized winner of last month's election, Alassane Ouattara. State Department officials say contacts are under way with France and member states of the West African regional grouping ECOWAS about sending more troops to Ivory Coast, as tensions there mount. A U.N. force of some 10,000 troops has been in Ivory Coast since civil warfare began...

Mauritania government has increased security for tourists in the country following the abductions last week of two Italian tourists near the border with Mali. Sergio Cicala and his wife Philomene Kabouree were kidnapped in an area of Mauritania where armed groups with links to Al-Qaeda are known to operate, diplomats said. There are suspicions the couple may have been smuggled into neighbouring Mali. "After these new kidnappings, it has been decided to adopt all necessary measures to ensure the personal security of foreigners in our country," the government said, quoted on Monday by pan-Arab daily al-Quds al-Arabi. It was the...

The American pastor and onetime presidential candidate was honoured at a ceremony with Amon N'Douffou V, king of the Agni people of the Krindjabo kingdom. The crowning ceremony was attended by bare-chested women. The king rules over a million members of his tribe, which venerates Michael Jackson after making him their prince after he visited the kingdom in 1992. Villagers deep in the rainforest launched a search for a successor to the singer who was crowned prince of the Agni people 17 years ago. The tribe held an extravagent two-day royal funeral for Michael Jackson. Traditional dancers and lookalikes of...

A national dance craze in Ivory Coast has spawned a black market in treatments claiming to increase one's bottom size. The dance in question has been inspired by DJ Mix and DJ Eloh's hit song Bobaraba, which means "big bottom" in the local Djoula language. When it plays you can be guaranteed that the dance floor will be packed with people shaking their derrieres. Even Ivorian footballers have adopted the moves and could be seen wiggling their bottoms in a curious on-pitch dance after each goal scored during the just-ended Africa Nations Cup. However, doctors have warned of the possible...

UN confirms inquiry of sexual abuse cases in Ivory Coast 23/07/2007 18:05 ABIDJAN, July 23 (AFP) The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast confirmed it was investigating cases of sexual abuse of Ivorian women, including young girls, by some Moroccan soldiers. "There was an internal investigation which proved the facts, but we are waiting the results of the full investigation led by our internal affairs services, which will confirm the facts," UN spokeswoman Margarita Amodeo told AFP. "There are minors among the victims concerned," she said. The United Nations at the weekend suspended a Moroccan peacekeeping unit based in...

http://thegiantotter.blogspot.com/2006/09/statistics-majority-of-muslims-support.html Statistics: Majority of Muslims support suicide bombing We now know from my previous article that a majority of Muslims in Palestine and Iraq support terrorism (53% and 61% respectively), while a large minority of Muslims in the UK support terrorism (25%). A further look into polls from the Pew Research Center for People and the Press has confirmed my previous conclusion; a majority of Muslims in most Islamic nations support terrorism. The PRC interviewed over 38,000 people during a four-month period in 44 nations. The conclusions of the Pew Global Attitudes survey are as follows: A majority of people...

Estonia has immobilised the ship at the heart of an environmental scandal in Ivory Coast and launched a criminal investigation after finding toxic waste on board, prosecutors said.The investigation was opened at the request of the environment ministry after the results of analyses conducted on the residue left from cleaning the Probo Koala's oil tanks came today," Piret Seeman, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office, told АFР on Wednesday. "The results of the analyses show similarities between the waste on board the Probo Koala in Estonia and the waste delivered by the Probo Koala to Ivory Coast, which caused mass...

VATICAN CITY, SEP 25, 2006 (VIS) - This morning in the Apostolic Palace at Castelgandolfo, Benedict XVI received Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, and representatives from Muslim-majority countries that maintain diplomatic links with the Holy See. Participating in the meeting were heads of mission from Kuwait, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Ivory Coast, Indonesia, Turkey, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Lebanon, Yemen, Egypt, Iraq, Senegal, Algeria, Morocco, Albania, the Arab League, Syria, Tunisia, Libya, Iran and Azerbaijan. Also present were 14 members of the Islamic Council of Italy and representatives from the Italian Islamic Cultural Center and the Office of...

Last week I participated on a panel on Capitol Hill under the aegis of the bipartisan Congressional Caucus for Côte d’Ivoire, co-chaired by Congressman John Boozman (R-Arkansas) and Congressman G.K. Butterfield (D-North Carolina). After an introduction by the Congressional Research Service’s director of African affairs, Nicolas Cook, who reviewed the context for the current crisis, three Ivorian envoys—Ambassador Saratta Ottro Zirignon-Touré, deputy chief of staff to Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo; Ambassador Daouda Diabate, Côte d’Ivoire’s representative to the United States; and Ambassador Philippe Djangoné-Bi, permanent representative of Côte d’Ivoire to the United Nations—passionately made the case for their country, whose...

So like Dude... I learned that the capitol of Texas is Cuba. That means that the capitol of Arizona is like, Brazil. WHOA DUDE! IT MUST BE! Uh Huh Huh Huh Huh Huh Huh...

Abidjan - A Paris gang-leader was arrested overnight in Abidjan and has confessed to the kidnap, torture and murder of a young French Jewish man, Ivorian investigators said on Thursday, in a case that has horrified France. Youssouf Fofana, 25, could be extradited back to France by the end of the day, according to French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin. Fofana is believed to have fled to Ivory Coast shortly after the dying Ilan Hamili was found on February 11 outside the French capital. "He has French nationality. He has been arrested by the Ivorian police. (French) police investigators are...

For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary February 8, 2006 Message To the Congress of the United States MESSAGE TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES: Consistent with subsection 204(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b)(IEEPA), and section 301 of the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1631 (NEA), I hereby report that I have issued an Executive Order (the "order") blocking the property of certain persons contributing to the conflict in Côte d'Ivoire. In that order, I declared a national emergency to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and...

Peacekeeping successes in Sierra Leone and Liberia in 2005 seem to have clouded the judgement of Security Council members on what still needs to be achieved in the world's poorest region. Increasingly desperate pleas for more peacekeepers for neighbouring Côte d'Ivoire - which has been divided between the rebel-held north and government-ruled south since a failed coup attempt in September 2002 - continue to go unheeded. This leaves the UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) dangerously exposed to the rising tide of nationalist violence that seeks to sweep it out of the country. An international working group set up to...

"To get their supporters out into the streets last week, youth leaders aired hate messages on radio and state TV, a favoured medium for whipping up political sentiment in Cote d’Ivoire since the country descended into civil war after a failed coup in September 2002. The battle for control of the airwaves has been at the centre of the struggle for power in Cote d’Ivoire, with factions notably seeking a hold over state radio and television broadcaster Radiodiffusion Television." Ivorienne (RTI)."

The Ivory Coast erupted into chaos yet again overnight, with opposing gangs roaming the streets and committing violence despite the presence of United Nations peacekeepers tasked with defending a cease-fire between the two sides of the Ivorian civil war. One UN contingent finally opened fire to protect themselves, killing four Ivorians, while another shot weapons in the air and fired teargas to cover their retreat: IVORY COAST, once one of the wealthiest countries in Africa, was close to its second civil war in five years yesterday as gangs of armed thugs loyal to President Gbagbo ran amok across the southern...

United Nations peacekeepers in Ivory Coast's main city are under siege by supporters of President Laurent Gbagbo. More than 2,000 protesters have tried to force their way into UN headquarters in Abidjan, and had to be held back by warning shots and tear gas. More than 300 troops have been forced to withdraw from two UN bases in the west of the country after clashes that left at least four protesters dead.

Bangladeshi United Nations peacekeepers have pulled out of a camp in western Ivory Coast after clashing with supporters of President Laurent Gbagbo. Four people are reported to have been killed when a UN base in Guiglo, 300km (187 miles) from Abidjan, was attacked. France has called for calm in towns and cities in the government-controlled south after three days of protests. Mr Gbagbo supporters are angry at international mediators wanting to dissolve the pro-Gbagbo parliament. The ruling party subsequently pulled out of the transitional government and UN-backed peace talks and is calling on the 10,000 French and UN troops keeping...

Ivory Coast's ruling party has called on peacekeepers to pull out, while protesters have attacked UN bases. Supporters of President Laurent Gbagbo are angry at international mediators, who say that parliament, which backs Mr Gbagbo, should stand down. UN troops have fired tear gas to repel protesters in the main city, Abidjan, while a UN base has been overrun in the western town of Guiglo. The ruling FPI has also said that it is pulling out of the peace process. The mediators were appointed by the UN to help steer the country towards elections, due this year. Ivory Coast has...

AFP is reporting a French sergeant-major was placed under judicial investigation for murder on Wednesday over the death of an Ivorian man in French military custody in Ivory Coast in May. A source close to the inquiry said the non-commissioned officer had admitted under questioning his responsibility in the act. Firmin Mahe, described by the French army as a dangerous bandit, was killed by suffocation by French soldiers in an armored vehicle on May 13 after being shot in the leg, then captured and taken for treatment by French soldiers. He died in a jeep on the way to hospital....