UNITED24 - Make a charitable donation in support of Ukraine!

Military

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

COTE D'IVOIRE: Saudi ambassador found dead

ABIDJAN, 28 March 2003 (IRIN) - Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire, Mohammed Ahmad al-Rasheed, was found dead on Friday in the economic capital Abidjan. Sources told IRIN he was found lying in a pool of blood on the 15th floor of the building where he lived, two floors down from his apartment. The circumstances surrounding his death were not immediately clear.

Al-Rasheed, who took up his post in December 2002, was the first Saudi ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire. He lived in Abidjan's business district of Plateau, site of all ministries, government institutions and numerous foreign representations.

The Ivorian government on Friday issued a statement of condolence to the Saudi monarchy and the family of the slain diplomat, condemning his killing as a "barbaric act". It said an inquiry has been launched to find those responsible and that Prime Minister Seydou Diarra had gone to the scene to inquire about the situation.

Meanwhile, rebel representatives were absent for the third time in a row from Thursday's weekly cabinet meeting of Cote d'Ivoire's newly formed government of national unity, that was held in Abidjan.

Themes: (IRIN) Conflict

[ENDS]

 

The material contained on this Web site comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post any item on this site, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All graphics and Images on this site may not be re-produced without the express permission of the original owner. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2003



NEWSLETTER
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list