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After weeks of protests, some of which turned deadly, the opposition has joined a new government and called off any further demonstrations.
Ivoirians took to the streets following the latest delay in legislative and presidential elections, scheduled to take place in March after six postponements in five years.
On 12 February Laurent Gbagbo dissolved government and the Independent Electoral Commission; in response, opposition party leaders stopped recognizing President Gbagbo as head of state.
Disputes over the electoral roll – and who is or is not a true Ivoirian and thus eligible to vote – continue, creating an increasingly xenophobic and violent atmosphere across the country, according to rights watchdog Amnesty International.
Here is a timeline of events leading to the current political crisis.
26 February 2010
A new electoral commission headed by a member of the opposition is formed. Opposition leader calls off demonstrations, announces the opposition’s acceptance of 11 positions in the new 27-member government.
23 February 2010
The president's office announces a partial government, without opposition party representation.
22 February 2010
Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso, mediator in the Ivorian political crisis, arrives in Abidjan, the economic hub of Côte d'Ivoire, to try reconciling the parties.
Two demonstrators are killed during protests in Daloa, about 150km west of the capital, Yamoussoukro, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
18-20 February 2010
Protesters take to the streets on the 18th in Issia in the centre-west, on the 19th in Gagnoa, about 130km southwest of Yamoussoukro, on the 20th in Man in the far west, and also in Korhogo in north-central part of the country. Five protesters are killed in Gagnoa.
On 20 February thousands of protesters march in Bouaké, the second largest city in Côte d'Ivoire, smashing shops, looting a government building, and setting fire to cars.
15-17 February 2010
Protest demonstrations take off in Katiola, in the interior of the country, on 15 February and in Bouaké on the 17th .
12 February 2010
President Gbagbo dissolves the Independent Electoral Commission.
Opposition parties call for people to protest on the streets. A group representing Côte d'Ivoire's leading opposition parties, Rally of Houphouétistes for Democracy and Peace, issues a communiqué stating they no longer recognize President Gbagbo as head of state. Elections are deferred for the sixth time.
11 February 2010
Voter registration for pending elections is suspended.
9 January 2010
President Gbagbo accuses electoral commissioner Robert Mambe of fraudulently adding over 429,000 names to the electoral list of people he said were not proven to be native Ivoirians.
3 December 2009
Burkina Faso mediators announce an election deadline of early March.
14 November 2009
The Independent Electoral Commission confirms that elections will not be held on 29 November as planned.
29 October 2009
UN renews sanctions against Côte d'Ivoire until 31 October 2010.
16 October 2009
Independent Electoral Commission announces a provisional voter list will not be ready for another month.
16 June 2009
Independent Electoral Commission proposes holding elections in the last week of November and the beginning of December at the latest.
26 May 2009
Rebels controlling the north of the country officially hand power over to civilian administrators, which aim to restore government control over the whole country. However,rebels still retain much control over local economy and security forces.
14 May 2009
Prime Minister Guillaume Soro announces presidential elections will take place on 29 November.
18 November 2008
Elections supposed to be held in December 2008 are delayed.
30 July 2008
President Gbagbo visits rebel headquarters in Bouaké for a "Flame of Peace" ceremony to symbolically burn weapons.
24 April 2008
Ivorian Political Party Code of Conduct is adopted at a ceremony attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, President Gbagbo, Prime Minister Soro, high-ranking members of the diplomatic community and Ivorian civil society representatives.
14 April 2008
Council of Ministers announces presidential elections will take place on 30 November 2008 under the peace plan, as proposed by the Independent Electoral Commission.
15 January 2008
UN Security Council Resolution 1795 is passed, giving the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Côte d'Ivoire the power to certify elections.
27 November 2007
President Gbagbo and Guillaume Soro sign a peace accord in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso's capital, fixing the date for legislative and presidential elections for June 2008 at the latest.
20 November 2007
The new Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Côte d'Ivoire, YJ Choi, arrives.
15 October 2007
Elections that were to be held in November 2007 are put on hold as voter identification and registration are not complete, according to the government.
30 July 2007
President Laurent Gbagbo travels to central town of Bouaké, stronghold of the former rebels, in his first visit to rebel territory since the rebellion began. Officials burn a pile of arms in a ceremony, declaring “the war in Côte d’Ivoire is over”.
29 June 2007
Prime Minister Guillaume Soro's aircraft comes under attack in the northern Ivorian city of Bouaké, headquarters of his former rebel group. Four people are killed and a number injured from the attack but Prime Minister Soro emerges unhurt. The UN mission in Côte d’Ivoire subsequently endorses the Prime Minister's call for an independent international inquiry into the incident.
18-19 June 2007
A Security Council mission visits Côte d'Ivoire to assess progress of the peace process in the country and to exchange views with parties to the conflict on how to move forward the peace process.
17 May 2007
Government militias start to disarm.
11 April 2007
A quadripartite agreement to eliminate the buffer zone known as the zone of confidence is signed by the Defence and Security Forces of Côte d'Ivoire (FDS-CI), the Armed Forces of the Forces Nouvelles (FAFN), the commanders of the UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire and the French Licorne forces.
4 March 2007
President Gbagbo and rebel leader Soro sign the Ouagadougou peace deal under the aegis of Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré. The pact sets a new timetable for organising elections in Côte d'Ivoire and reuniting the country.
31 October 2006
Presidential elections are cancelled.
17 October 2006
The African Union Peace and UN Security Council extend President Gbagbo's mandate by one year, during which time the roadmap is to be fully implemented. President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa is replaced by the African Union Chairman as mediator.
6 October 2006
An extraordinary summit is held with ECOWAS leaders, at which recommendations for a roadmap to peace in Côte d'Ivoire are put forward.
12 July 2006
The president’s party Front Populaire Ivoirien (FPI) calls for a boycott of the voter identification hearings which sparked bloody demonstrations by the Young Patriots (a militia close to President Gbagbo) who blockaded various cities to prevent the identification process.
4 December 2005
Charles Konan Banny, the governor of the Central Bank of West Africa States, is appointed interim prime minister by mediators.
8 November 2005
The first meeting of the newly established International Working Group (see 21 October 2005) is held.
31 October 2005
Presidential elections are cancelled.
21 October 2005
Security Council adopts resolution 1633, endorsing the previous African Union decision, extending President Gbagbo's term by one year, deciding that a new prime minister acceptable to all parties and with executive powers should be designated; establishing a roadmap for disarmament, identification and organisation of elections supervised by an International Working Group; and strengthening the threat of sanctions against individual spoilers.
29 June 2005
The Declaration on the Implementation of the Pretoria Agreement, signed on 11 April, on the peace process in Côte d'Ivoire is signed in Pretoria under the auspices of the African Union.
6 November 2004
The national armed forces of Côte d'Ivoire attacked the French Licorne forces. The Council condemns the attacks and confirms that French forces and the UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) are authorized to use all necessary means to fully carry out their mandate.
30 July, 2004
West African heads of state come together in Accra, capital of Ghana, to get opposition party leaders in Ivory Coast to sign the Accra 3rd Agreement, fixing a calendar for disarmament of the militia and rebels.
27 March 2004
Rebels and the opposition party, Rally for the Republic, pull out of the government after an anti-Gbagbo march is banned, leading to protests in which more than 100 are killed.
27 February 2004
Security Council adopts resolution 1528 establishing UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI). The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) forces and the UN Mission in Côte d'Ivoire's (MINUCI) authority is transferred to the new mission.
13 May 2003
Security Council adopts resolution 1479 establishing the UN Mission in Côte d'Ivoire (MINUCI) with a mandate to facilitate the implementation of the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement and of the ceasefire.
March 2003
A government of national reconciliation is formed with members from the rebel ranks and a consensus prime minister, Seydou Diarra.
24 January 2003
The French sponsored Linas-Marcoussis Agreement is signed between the Ivorian government and all political forces.
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