Ghana opposed to use of force in I. Coast

Ghanaian President John Atta Mills has distanced himself from proposals to carry out a military intervention to oust Ivory Coast’s incumbent president.

On Friday, Mills said that he has been in touch with President Laurent Gbagbo and his rival, President-elect Alassane Ouattara, to find ways to peacefully resolve the crisis which began after the disputed November election, AP reported.

“I do not think that this military operation is going to bring peace to Cote d’Ivoire,” Mills stated.

He also rejected allegations that Ghana has been involved in arms shipments to the Ivory Coast.

However, other members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have threatened to use force against Gbagbo.

On Thursday, Ouattara urged the West African special forces to remove the country’s incumbent president.

Speaking from his heavily guarded headquarters in Abidjan’s Golf Hotel, Ouattara said that Gbagbo would not be able to resist if ECOWAS launched a military operation.

“Military interventions of this kind have already taken place in Africa, as in Latin America. It’s not very complicated. If members of the 16-nation Economic Community of West African States decide to go ahead, they can do it — they can literally seize him [incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo] from his palace,” Ouattara said.

Gbagbo has repeatedly warned that any attempt to overthrow him by force could lead to a civil war in the country.

The UN says that more than 20,000 Ivorians have fled to neighboring Liberia, fearing a civil war may break out as a result of the current political crisis.

At least 210 people have been killed in the post-election violence in Ivory Coast.