Authorities report failure of coup attempt

An attempt by a group of armed men to topple President Laurent Gbagbo’s government in Cote d’Ivoire has been thwarted, Minister of Defence and Civil Protection Moise Lida Kouassi said on Monday. "The situation at this time is fully under control," Lida Kouassi said. Minister of the Interior and Decentralisation Emile Boga Doudou said the attacks started on Sunday at 22:35 GMT and that the attackers had been put to flight within three hours. He said "these rebel forces" attacked the headquarters of the para-military gendarmerie and the presidency. They also occupied state radio and television. Neither official disclosed the identity of the attackers in the 10:00 GMT radio broadcast during which they spoke. Lida Koussi said, "The security forces intervened vigorously to free the television and radio stations". Two gendarmes were killed, other members of the security forces were wounded and 15 of the assailants were captured. Appearing on television at around noon, Lida Kouassi said "a number" of the assailants were also killed. He said the army, police and gendarmes "were able to coordinate their actions admirably and the reason why they did not control the situation immediately during the night was that they waited for the right moment to go on the offensive. By the pre-dawn hours everything was fully under control." "Right now we could have called on the population to resume its normal activities but we still have to mop up the whole town and take possession of all points," Lida Kouassi said on radio. Heavy machine gun fire and explosions could be heard in Abidjan from just before midnight until daybreak. The assailants, whose identity was not disclosed, made a brief announcement before dawn on state radio that they were changing the current political order. Lida Kouassi said that announcement had been recorded on a cassette which the authorities seized from the attackers. He said they also seized "a prepared statement to the nation announcing the dissolution of the government, the suspension of political parties and announcing the installation, once again, of a certain committee." Identical announcements had been made by the military in December 1999 when it toppled former President Henri Konan Bedie and replaced him with the National Public Salvation Committee (CNSP - Comite National de Salut Publique). That coup had been seen by some as backed by the opposition Rassemblement des Republicains (RDR). The CNSP, headed by General Robert Guei, ruled until 25 October last, when Guei was forced out by popular demonstrations after proclaiming himself the winner of presidential elections held three days before. His ouster allowed the real winner of the election, Laurent Gbagbo, to be sworn in as president amid demonstrations by supporters of RDR leader Alassane Ouattara, who had been prevented from running for president by the Supreme Court. Scores of people died between 24 and 26 October in the anti-Guei and RDR demonstrations. Most were killed by security forces, according to reports by various human rights groups. Those killed on 25-26 were reported to be mainly Muslim northerners - especially members of Ouattara’s Dioula ethnic group - widely seen in the south as supporters of the RDR. Lida Kouassi said on television that justice would take its course and that when people were punished, the authorities should not be seen as targeting a particular ethnic group. Gbagbo was said to have gone to his country home for the weekend and was due back in Abidjan on Monday.