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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
COTE D IVOIRE: Disarmament of militias postponed
ABIDJAN, 8 Jun 2006 (IRIN) - Pro-government militias in the west of Cote d’Ivoire will not hand in their guns as scheduled on Thursday postponing the much-delayed disarmament programme, key to holding presidential elections later this year, once again.
“After meeting with the militia leaders, we found that not everyone had been fully informed,” an official of the national disarmament programme told IRIN.
“It has been postponed.”
Rebel and army chiefs agreed to start disarming thousands of pro-government militias, many of which are based in the western cocoa-growing region, last week. A ceremony held last year to the same end stopped short of dismantling the armed groups.
Leaders of the two sides are set to meet on 15 June to discuss the return to barracks of rebel and loyalist fighters, or the ‘regroupment’ phase of the disarmament programme.
PB/ SS
[ENDS]
This material 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 this item, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2006
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