Anti-Gbagbo rebels seize two towns

Rebels fighting to install the internationally recognised president of Ivory Coast have seized two towns amid heavy fighting, including one in the cocoa-producing heartland with highway access to a major seaport, an official said yesterday.

The four-month-long political crisis was caused by incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo's refusal to leave office. The UN said fighting was still raging in the two towns – Daloa and Bondoukou – and that 20,000 people had sought refuge at a Catholic mission in a third city.