Opposition leaders in Pretoria for talks

//Att. subscribers, the following report corrects and updates an earlier story titled 'Rebel leaders in Pretoria for talks'.// Ivorian opposition leaders arrived on Thursday in South Africa’s capital, Pretoria, to hold talks on their country's political crisis, a senior South African government official told IRIN. "The leaders will present their viewpoint on the situation in Cote d'Ivoire to President Thabo Mbeki later this evening [Thursday], until he [Mbeki] leaves for PLO [Palestine Liberation Organisation] leader Yasser Arafat's funeral,” Mbeki's spokesman, Bheki Khumalo, said. “The talks can resume after the president returns from the funeral, if required." Violence erupted on Saturday in Cote d'Ivoire's commercial capital, Abidjan, after France destroyed the air force of its former colony. The French attack followed the deaths of nine French peacekeepers and one American civilian in an air raid on the rebel town of Bouake. The violence prompted France to begin airlifting some of its nationals from the country while Britain announced on Thursday that it would evacuate about 400 of its citizens. Nationals of other countries, including Canada, Spain, Mali, Morocco, Portugal and the United States have also been queueing up to leave. Around 150 non-essential UN staff and family members were also scheduled to leave, Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Cote d'Ivoire, said. "I am in the process of organising the departure of the first UN staff to Accra," he told IRIN by phone. Calm appeared to have returned to Abidjan’s streets on Thursday. The crowds of anti-French demonstrators had dispersed, although the odd huddle of youths, some sporting hats in the orange, green and white of the Ivorian flag, could be seen. Banks and some government offices were open. There were buses and taxis on the streets although many residents stayed home. Some markets were open, but many shops and business kept their doors shuttered. As the violence engulfed Abidjan at the weekend, the African Union (AU) called on Mbeki in a communique issued on Sunday to "undertake an urgent mission" to resolve the Ivorian crisis. Mbeki flew into Cote d'Ivoire earlier this week to hold talks with President Laurent Gbagbo. "The president has submitted a report on his talks with the Ivorian president to the AU yesterday [Wednesday],” Khumalo said. “He will submit yet another report on his talks with the opposition to the AU." Alassane Ouattara, head of the Rally for Republicans Party, and Alphonse Djedje Mady, secretary general of the Democratic Party of Cote d’Ivoire, were among the politicians scheduled to meet Mbeki. Khumalo had mentioned earlier that rebel leader Guillaume Soro had also arrived but that was denied by rebel spokesman Siriki Konate, who told IRIN no rebel delegation had gone to the talks. News agencies later quoted Khumalo as confirming that the rebels had not arrived. Cote d’Ivoire has been split into a rebel-held north and a government-controlled south since September 2002, with around 10,000 peacekeepers from the UN and France standing guard in a buffer zone between the two sides.