ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — After a day of clashes, some of the bloodiest to hit Ivory Coast in years, this divided corner of Africa where two rivals claim to be president stands at a precarious crossroads between war and peace.
On Friday, it seemed the nation of 21 million could slide either way. There were reports of rebels attacking several towns but retreating.
A day earlier, Alassane Ouattara, whose election victory last month over incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo has international recognition, called on his supporters to seize the state TV headquarters in Abidjan, the capital.
Their advance got nowhere near the station, but a firefight broke out between rebels and security forces loyal to Gbagbo, the first significant clash between the two sides in six years. Rebels also briefly attacked government positions in the central town of Tiebissou on Thursday. The day’s casualty toll given by various groups ranged from nine to 30 shot and killed.
The former French colony is the world’s leading cocoa producer, and skyscraper-lined Abidjan was once known as the Paris of West Africa. Then came a 2002-03 civil war that divided it in two.
The war left the rebels in control of most of the north. A 2007 peace deal reunited the nation in theory and set the stage for elections that had been delayed repeatedly.
In reality, though, neither side was ready for the vote. The rebels never disarmed, and Gbagbo — who had managed to stay in power since his mandate expired in 2005, citing emergency clauses in the constitution — was not ready to lose.
Although Ouattara’s victory has been recognized by many foreign governments, Gbagbo fully controls the army and state media. He occupies the presidential palace, and his loyalists hold most Cabinet ministries. Ouattara, by contrast, is trying to govern from a hotel room in a compound protected by 800 U.N. peacekeepers.
From here, the crisis could move in any direction.
A power-sharing deal is one possibility, and deputy U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq has said Gbagbo wants to talk to Ouattara about it.
But U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon was firm Friday in insisting Gbagbo step aside.
“Any other outcome would make a mockery of democracy and the rule of law,” Ban said. “There was a clear winner. There is no other option.”
His warning was echoed by U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley.
“Time is running out,” he said. “The United States is prepared to impose targeted sanctions individually and in concert with our partners on President Gbagbo.”
But sanctions have typically failed to reverse illegal power grabs in Africa in the past.
In the meantime, the country is in fear and bracing for more violence. The U.N. refugee agency says at least 3,700 people have fled to neighboring Liberia and Guinea.
Ouattara called for more demonstrations Friday, but Abidjan was mostly calm.
