At least 29 fighters were killed in heavy clashes on Wednesday between Ivory Coast soldiers and Liberians fighting for two rebel movements in the west of the country, a representative for the Ivorian army said.
Lieutenant-Colonel Jules Yao Yao said the Ivorian army was attacked in the afternoon by between 400 and 500 rebels, most of whom he described as Liberian mercenaries.
”The provisionary toll is four dead and 15 wounded on the government side and 25 dead and lots of arms and weapons seized on the side of the enemy.”
”The battle is continuing,” he added.
The western rebels, who surfaced at the end of November taking key areas near the prized cocoa belt, had signed a ceasefire last week with the Ivorian government before the start of French-brokered peace talks near Paris aimed at ending a ruinous four-month war.
The western rebels had earlier clashed with French peacekeepers in the region but later apologised, saying they were due to a ”misunderstanding.”
French peacekeepers clashed anew with rebels near the western town of Duekoue on Tuesday in which at least eight rebels were killed or wounded and a French soldier was badly injured and had to have his forearm amputated.
The clashes have cast a shadow on the peace talks near Paris which were making good progress until the latest fighting and a walkout by the president of the Ivorian national assembly who accused the French mediator of trying to topple President Laurent Gbagbo. – Sapa-AFP