Ivory Coast: Besieged Gbagbo forces repelled attack
Heavy arms fire rang out Wednesday near the home of the country’s strongman who remained holed up in his residence, as forces backing his rival assaulted the residence to try to force him out, diplomats and witnesses said.
While some are reporting Gbagbo is holed up in a subterranean bunker, incumbent strongman Laurent Gbagbo himself told French radio he is simply in his house, reports the BBC.
“I am in the residence - the residence of the president of the republic,” Gbagbo said. “When it rains, can’t one take shelter inside one’s house?”
Yves Doumbia, a spokesman for the forces backing democratically elected president Alassane Ouattara said his men were repelled by heavy fire from within the compound after piercing its outer perimeter.