Fears of military intervention grow in Ivory Coast

FEARS of a regional military intervention grew yesterday in Ivory Coast following a threat from West African neighbours to force out incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo if he does not soon heed international calls to step down from power.

Dozens of people gathered outside the Nigerian Embassy in Abidjan, holding signs that read: “We don’t want a military intervention” and “Let Ivorians solve Ivorian problems.”

Nigeria has the strongest army in the region and is expected to play a major role if an operation is launched to oust Gbagbo.