20101226
africanews

An official aircraft belonging to beleaguered Ivorian president Laurent Gbagbo has been grounded at the Basel-Mulhouse airport in Switzerland. According to a French foreign ministry spokesman, Bernard Valero, the aircraft was grounded with the backing of "the legitimate authorities" of the West African state.

The airport is jointly administered by French and Swiss authorities. According to the VOA, Gbagbo who has refused to cede power over a controversial poll result turnover was not on board the plane.


The spokesman said of Ivory Coast asked that the plane be grounded and, in his words, "that it is precisely what we have done."


He was referring to the rival Ivorian government under Alassane Ouattara, who has been recognized by the international community as the winner of the country's November run-off election.


A high-level delegation from the West African regional bloc ECOWAS is traveling to Abidjan Tuesday in an ongoing effort to get Gbagbo to step down. ECOWAS is threatening to use force to get Gbagbo to accept the election results.


The delegation is comprised of the presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde. It is to offer Gbagbo political asylum in exchange for his resignation.


There is increasing concern that the standoff could plunge Ivory Coast back into civil war.

Ivory Coast, once the economic hub of West Africa, was devastated by a civil war in 2002 and 2003.