Laurent Gbagbo attempts to cling on to power in Ivory Coast for another day as France denies involvement in fighting near his bunker

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:15 PM on 6th April 2011

• Rogue leader cornered in own compound but refuses surrender
  

• Gbagbo's troops and generals surrender arms and call ceasefire

• Obama describes UN intervention in conflict as 'necessary'

• Source claims French troops in Abidjan are not involved in fighting at Gbagbo residence

Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo was holed up in a bunker desperately clinging on to power last night as he steadfastly refused to surrender his leadership of the country.

Gbagbo, who has refused to cede power since November's election where he lost to rival Alassane Ouattara, insisted he did not want to die - despite being almost entirely surrounded and his troops having been overpowered.

The rogue leader denied that he was willing to surrender, and rejected demands he recognise Ouattara as the winner of the poll.

Amateur footage shows an aerial bombardment by French and UN forces on Gbagbo's last stronghold in Abidjan

Incumbent Ivorian leader Laurent Gbagbo, left, has refused to surrender power to rival Alassane Ouattra, right

But last night Gbagbo was said by diplomats to be holed up in a bunker under his presidential residence, surrounded on all sides by soldiers loyal to his rival Ouattra.

Members of Gbagbo's cabinet claim that Ouattra's forces have been instructed to remove Gbagbo from his presidential bunker unharmed.

The Ivory Coast leader has been cornered and his own troops are rapidly disbanding after being outgunned by French and UN airstrikes.

On Tuesday, dozens of Gbagbo's soldiers close to his luxurious compound were seen entering a church where they stripped off their uniforms and abandoned their weapons.

Earlier, Gbagbo's three top generals said they had ordered their men to stop fighting, the United Nations said in a statement.

Stand-off: A fire rages after an explosion near to Tuesday's conflict in Abidjan between forces loyal to rogue Ivory Coast leader Laurent Gbagbo and his rival Alassane Ouattra

A convoy prepares for fighting across the main city of Abidjan ahead of action by the UN and the French

It comes as a French government source said that French troops in Abidjan were not involved in fighting around Gbagbo's residence.

The source said fighting began after he had shown he was unwilling to negotiate with mediators trying to persuade him to leave.

'He is not sincere in his willingness to negotiate his departure.'

Speaking to a French TV channel by phone, Gbagbo insisted he still considers himself the winner of last November's UN certified election, but stated he did not want to cling to power until the bitter end.

It is still unclear whether negotiations to remove Gbagbo as president had been successful, after French and UN forces backed Ivorian fighters who are trying to install his rival Ouattra as leader.

A United Nations internal document is said to state that Gbagbo has surrendered, but a UN official has since claimed that the incumbent leader has refused to step down and has even demanded UN protection.

Gbagbo told French TV station LCI: 'I'm not a kamikaze. I love life. My voice is not the voice of a martyr, no, no, no, I'm not looking for death. It's not my aim to die.

'For peace to return to Ivory Coast, I and Ouattara, the two of us have to talk.'

Alassane Ouattra appeared to almost mock his near-ousted rival yesterday, as reports say his private TV station showed the movie 'The Fall,' which traces the last days of Adolf Hitler inside a bunker in Germany.

Forces loyal to Alassane Ouattara prepare for an assault on Gbagbo's bases on Tuesday

Pro-Gbagbo soldiers, seen her patrolling the streets around his luxury compound earlier this week, have since handed in their weapons as the leader's surrender edges closer

The long-delayed election in the world's top cocoa producing nation was meant to end a 2002-2003 civil war, but Gbagbo's refusal to cede power has plunged the country into a violent political standoff that has killed over 1,500 people.

Over the past week, forces loyal to Ouattara intensified their campaign to oust Gbagbo by launching a major assault on his last strongholds in Abidjan.

After amassing at the outskirts of the city on Monday, forces loyal to Ouattara seized the presidential residence where Gbagbo has been holed up overnight.

They moved in after the United Nations agreed to act on a Security Council resolution giving their peacekeepers the right to take out Gbagbo's heavy artillery.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told parliament in Paris on Tuesday: 'We are on the brink of convincing him to leave power.'

Juppe said the negotiations were ongoing between Gbagbo's close collaborators, the UN and French ambassador to Ivory Coast, Jean-Marc Simon.

French troops in an armoured vehicle patrol Abidjan on Tuesday, as officials said rogue president Laurent Gbagbo has 'no cards left'

A home furnishing shop in Abidjan suffers looting during the civil unrest surrounding the surrender of leader Laurent Gbagbo

The French Minister said Gbagbo would be required to relinquish power in writing and must formally recognize Ouattara, the internationally backed winner of the November election.

Gbagbo government spokesman Ahoua Don Mello, who was taking part in the negotiations, said the parties were still in talks.

Don Mello said: 'Some points are still being discussed. Nothing has been signed, Gbagbo has not signed anything.'

The UN document said fighting in Abidjan and elsewhere in the country had stopped since midday on Tuesday, and that Ivory Coast's generals had asked the UN peacekeeper force to protect pro-Gbagbo soldiers and take possession of all their weapons.

However a Western diplomat said sporadic gunfire could still be heard in the well-to-do Abidjan suburb of Cocody, as some armed pro-Gbagbo militia men prowled the streets.

'I spent quite a lot of the day in the cellar again because of fighting at the bottom of the street,' the diplomat said.

'It is clear the situation is not under control. There are lots of pro-Gbagbo militia running around with guns.'

This picture, taken in 1999, shows how Gbagbo and Ouattra, who were locked in conflict this week, have been political rivals for over a decade

Heavy fighting between Ouattra and Gbagbo's forces saw this armoured tank left burning at a roadside in Abidjan

Experts say that Gbagbo's negotiating position has weakened over the past fortnight.

Hannah Koep, Ivory Coast analyst at London-based consultancy Control Risks said: 'It looks like Gbagbo is trying to negotiate his way out.

'What he can offer is another matter ... his negotiating position is much weaker than a couple of weeks ago.'

President Barack Obama said on Tuesday the role of the UN was necessary to end the conflict.

Ouattara's forces had taken over three-quarters of the countryside between Monday and Wednesday of last week, but then faltered when they reached Abidjan, where Gbagbo had created a protective radius manned by his most faithful soldiers.

President Obama said in a statement: 'To end this violence and prevent more bloodshed, former President Gbagbo must stand down immediately and direct those who are fighting on his behalf to lay down their arms.'

Ivory Coast gained independence from France in 1960, and some 20,000 French citizens still lived there when a brief civil war broke out in 2002.

The week-long Ivory Coast conflict drove the nation's cocoa prices lower on Tuesday, as dealers bet on a swift end to Gbagbo's rule and a resumption of exports.

The country's defaulted $2.3 billion Eurobond rose as the assault raised expectations for repayment.

Desperation: Ivorian civilians flee Abidjan city centre after a night of bombardment near their homes on Tuesday

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