IVORY COAST: Ivory Coast president names rebel leader as premier

Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo named rebel leader Guillaume Soro as prime minister on Thursday (March 29) in a major step towards implementing a peace deal to reunite the West African nation. Gbagbo and Soro, leader of the New Forces rebels who seized the north of Ivory Coast in a brief 2002-2003 civil war, signed an agreement three weeks ago in Burkina Faso to guide the world's largest cocoa producer towards elections within 10 months. "Today I came to see the president and receive the nomination," Soro told journalists at the presidential palace. "I want to salute all Ivorians, all those who have worked for a peace process to give hope to all Ivorians." The home-grown accord, which came after a series of foreign-backed deals had foundered, envisaged a new transitional government by April 8 to replace the U.N.-backed administration of Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny. Discussions were underway to determine the composition of the cabinet, presidential officials said. Soro said he would address the nation in the coming days. The peace process has already led to the creation of a joint army command to demobilise militia fighters. The accord, signed on March 4 in the Burkinabe capital Ouagadougou with the mediation of President Blaise Compaore, foresees the dismantling of a U.N.-manned buffer zone between the two warring factions and the withdrawal of French troops.

ITN Source | March 30, 2007

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