Attack on president's residence reported

Gunmen in civilian clothes on Monday attacked the home of Cote d'Ivoire's leader, General Robert Guei, on the edge of Abidjan's central administrative district, Le Plateau, Information Minister Henri Sama said. "A few isolated elements ... tried to take the residence of the president of the republic by force by trying to disarm the guards," he said on state radio. "The response was fatal. It was tough, it was severe and we are calling on all Ivoirians to be vigilant." An official attached to the Presidency told IRIN that the shooting began at about 03:00 GMT. A humanitarian source said there was "sustained firing" between 03:10 and 05:30 GMT and that shots could still be heard at 10:30 GMT. The streets in Le Plateau were deserted except for truckloads of soldiers, the source told IRIN. There was a heavy military presence around state radio, which was cordoned off by the armed forces, the source added. State radio reported that a number of presidential guards were detained and interrogated. The attack came about two and a half months after a mutiny by soldiers demanding allowances which, they claimed, had been promised them when the military overthrew President Henri Konan Bedie on 24 December 1999.