scale war in Ivory Coast would destabilise West Africa, a neighbourhood which includes fragile post-conflict states such as Liberia and Sierra Leone. Rebels aligned to Soro have controlled the mostly Muslim north of the country since a failed coup against Gbagbo in September 2002. The two sides signed deals on political reforms and rebel disarmament in January 2003 and July 2004. But hopes for a peaceful end to the stalemate between the two camps crumbled earlier this month when the army attacked the rebel-held north, breaking a fragile 18-month truce and plunging the country into chaos. A summit of the regional Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Abuja on Sunday called for an immediate U.N. arms embargo on both sides in the Ivory Coast conflict. The United Nations had been expected to impose a ban on weapons purchases from Dec. 10 at a Security Council meeting on Monday, but six African leaders meeting in Nigeria called for the sanctions to take immediate effect. South Africa, chair of the African Union's Peace and Security Council whose mandate is fixing the continent's conflicts, said it supported the ECOWAS summit decision.
