MWANAUME aliyetambulika kwa jina moja la Faridi [59] mkazi wa Gongolamboto jijini Dar es Salaam, amekutwa na kadhia nyingine ya kupewa kipigo kutoka kwa watoto wake kutokana na tabia za kumnyanyasa mke wake.
MWanaume huyu alinusurika adhabu mahakamani kwa mke wake kwenda kufuta kesi kutokana na kumuonea huruma mume wake aliozaa nae watoto na kuishi nae kwa muda mrefu.
Huu ni muendelezo wa habari iliyoandikwa katika mtandao huu iliyokuwa na kichwa cha habari kisemacho ampeleka mumewe polisi.
Awali Faridi aliweza kufikishwa kituo cha polisi na mke wake kutokana na tabia ya zake chafu ikiwemo na kumpiga mara kwa mara na watoto wao kutoa idhini aweze kumfikisha kituo cha polisi.
Ilidaiwa mwanaume huyo alikuwa akihitaji kuoa mke wa pili na amlete katika nyumba aliyojenga na mke huyo kitendo ambacho mke wake Bi FAtma [50] alikuwa hakiafiki na kumfanyia visa kila kukicha ili aweze kuondoka katika nyumba hiyo alete mke mwingine
Juzi majira ya jioni ilidaiwa kuwa, Farid aliweza kufika nyumbani kwake akiwa na mwanamke mwingine anayekadiriiwa kuwa na miaka kati ya 30 hadi 32 kwa minajili ya kuja kuwatambulisha watoto wake akiwemo na mke wake kuwa ni mama yao mwingine ambae anatarajia kufunga nae ndoa
Imedaiwa kuwa mara baada ya kufanya utambulisho huo watoto wake waliingia ndani na kuweka bunge la muda kuhusiana na kitendo alichofanya baba yao na kufika maamuzi ya kuwaadabisha wote wawili huku wengine wakiwa na mawazo wamfukuze mama huyo na wengine wakidai watakuwa wanamuonea huyo mwanamke na kufikia maamuzi ya kumuadabisha baba yao
Imedaiwa kuwa mtoto wake wa kiume ambaye alipigiwa simu kwa kuwa anaishi karibu na nyumbani hapo alifika nyumbani hapo na kuanza kufanya vurugu kwa baba huyo na hatimaye watoto wake wengine wawili wa kike wakaingilia ugomvi huo na kujikuta wakimpa kichapo baba yao huku wakilia kwa machungu kuonewa kwa mama yao
Pinda: Mshaurini JK kuhusu mishahara ya wabunge
Said Powa
WAZIRI Mkuu Mizengo Pinda, ameiagiza Tume mpya ya Utumishi wa Bunge kumshauri Rais kuhusu malipo ya mishahara ya wabunge baada ya bunge kuvunjwa na Rais kwa kufuata sheria, kanuni na taratibu.
Akizindua tume hiyo jijini Dar es Salaam jana Pinda alisema katika bunge la tisa uzoefu unaonyesha kwamba kuna tatizo kuhusu uhalali wa mishahara na posho za wabunge baada ya bunge kuvunjwa.
Alifafanua kwamba wananchi na wabunge wanataka kujua kama kweli upo uhalali wa wabunge kuendelea kulipwa baada ya bunge kuvunjwa na Rais. Pinda alisema kutokana na hali hiyo ilifahamika kwamba baada ya Rais kuvunja bunge na kutangazwa kwenye gazeti la Serikali, ndiyo ukomo wa muda wa mbunge, kwa mantiki hiyo ndiyo ukomo wa malipo ya mishahara na posho zote zinazolipwa kwa wabunge.
“Moja ya jukumu la kamati hii ni kumshauri Rais kuhusu malipo ya mishahara na posho na stahili zingine za Wabunge kwa kuzingatia sheria kanuni na taratibu. Natumaini kamati italifanyia kazi suala hili ili lieleweke vizuri kwa waheshimiwa Wabunge,” Alisema Pinda. Pinda alisema bajeti ya ofisi ya bunge imekua ikioboreshwa ili kuiwezesha sekretarieti ya bunge kutoka Sh26.5 billioni 2006/2007 hadi kufikia Sh70.5 billioni mwaka wa fedha 2009/2010.
“Suala la kupokea mishahara na posho kwa Wabunge wakati Rais ameshavunja bunge, lilileta maneno mengi na sintofahamu kwa wananchi na hata wabunge wenyewe mwaka jana,”alisema Pinda.
Hii ni mara ya kwanza kwa tume inayomaliza muda wake kufanya makabidhiano rasmi na tume mpya, hata hivyo mwenyekiti aliyemaliza muda wake Samweli Sitta, hakuwepo kwa maelezo kuwa yuko nnje ya nchi kikazi na nafasi yake ilichukuliwa na mwenyekiti wa sasa ambaye alikuwa Makamu Mwenyekiti wa Tume iliyomaliza mudawake Anne Makinda.
Naye mwakilishi wa Katibu wa Bunge, Eliakimu Mrema, alisema kuna tatizo la uhaba wa watumishi hasa ukizingatia ongezeko la wabunge na kufanya ikama ya watumishi kutoendana na ongezeko la wabunge ambao kwa sasa wamefikia 357 ikilinganishwa na ikama ya watumishi 251 wa sasa na kupunguza ufanisi wa kazi.
Akitoa mfano Mrema alisema Bunge la Zambia lenye wabunge 260 tu, lakini linahudumiwa na watumishi zaidi ya 500
Watano wafa kwa radi- Morogoro
WATU watano wamefariki dunia papohapo mara baada ya kupigwa na radi katika Tarafa ya Bwakila Wilayani Morogoro.
Kati ya waliofariki ni wanafunzi wawili na wengine ni wakazi wa tarafa hiyo. Tukio hilo lilitokea machi 25 ,mwaka huu majira ya ya saa 12 jioni mkoani humo
Katika tukio hilo pia wanafunzi 14 walijeruhiwa na radi hiyo wakiwa wanacheza mpira wa miguu katika mechi ya kirafiki kati ya Shule ya Sekondari ya Milengwelengwe na Shule ya Msingi Mngazi katika kijiji cha Gomero ikiwa ni mashindano ya Umiseta ngazi ya wilaya.
Wanafunzi wakiwa katika mechi hiyo mvua ilianza kunyesha na kuwafanya baadhi ya wanafunzi kukimbilia kujificha madarasani ndipo punde radi kubwa ilipiga na kuua wanafunzi hao na kuwajeruhi kadhaa.
Waliokufa papo hapo baada ya kupigwa na radi ni Richard Abias (15), mwanafunzi wa kidato cha kwanza na Adolf Kunambi (20) wa kidato cha nne.
JK: Awajia juu watendaji wa Wizara ya Viwanda
Leon Bahati
RAIS Jakaya Kikwete amewajia juu watendaji wa Wizara ya Viwanda na Biashara kwamba Tanzania ina raslimali nyingi ambazo zinaiwezesha nchi kuwa ya viwanda, lakini hawaweki mikakakti madhubuti ya kufikia malengo hayo.
Kikwete aliyasema hayo jana wakati alipotembelea Wizara hiyo ili kupata taarifa ya utekelezaji na mikakati ya kuinua uchumi wa nchi."Tanzania inaweza kuwa nchi ya viwanda, lakini hatujaweza kutumia kikamilifu fursa tulizo nazo.
"Malighafi tunazo nyingi, changamoto ni kuweka mikakati ya namna gani tuwe na viwanda,” alisema Rais Kikwete.
Alisema Mungu ameijalia Tanzania raslimali nyingi, lakini nchi kama Japan imefanikiwa kiviwanda japokuwa mali ghafi zote inaagiza kutoka nje.
Alitaja baadhi ya raslimali hizo kuwa ni Ziwa la magadi la Natron, asali, nta, nyama, maeneo ya uwekezaji na fursa za kuuza bidhaa nje.Aliwajia juu wataalamu wa wizara hiyo na wafanyabiashara nchini, akisema wamekuwa wakienda nje ya nchi na kupewa fursa mbalimbali za kibiashara, lakini wakirejea nchini wamekuwa hawaweki mikakati ya utekelezaji.
Akitoa mfano alisema nchi kadhaa hasa za kiarabu zimekuwa zikiagiza viungo vyenye thamani ya mabilioni ya fedha, lakini wataalamu na wafanyabiashara nchini wamekuwa hawatilii mkazo utekelezaji wa mahitaji ya nchi hizo.
"Maana inafikia mahali kwenye simu zao wana-save namba za waagizaji hao kwa jina la 'msumbufu', kila akipiga anakata, maana hana jibu," alisema Rais Kikwete.Alisema inapotokea waagizaji wanahitaji mzigo mkubwa, wafanyabiashara hao wamekuwa wakiacha kupokea oda kwa sababu wamezoea kufanya biashara ndogo.
Waziri wa Viwanda na Biashara, Ciril Chami alikiri udhaifu huo kwa wizara yake, na kuahidi kusimamia suala hilo kikamilifu ili kutekeleza mpango wa mapinduzi ya sekta ya viwanda ifikapo mwaka 2025
Maandamano dhidi ya serikali yaanza Syria
Rais wa Syria
Ripoti kutoka nchini Syria zinasema kuwa maandamano ya kupinga serikali ya nchi hiyo yameanza katika miji kadhaa nchini humo.
Walioshuhudia maandamano hayo katika mji wa kusini wa Deraa, wameiambia BBC kuwa, mamia ya watu waliotoka sala za ijumaa walijumuika na waandamanaji wengine kwenye maanndamano hayo.
Hali ya ulinzi imeimarishwa katika mji mkuu wa nchi hiyo Damascus.
Wanaharakati wa kisiasa wameahidi kile wanachokiita siku kuu ya wafa dini ili kuwakumbuka watu waliouawa kwenye maandamano ya kisiasa nchini humo katika muda wa wiki mbili zilizopita.
Siku ya Jumatano Rais wa nchi hiyo , Bashar al-Assad alishindwa kutuliza waandaamanaji hao wakati alipohutubia taifa hilo, huku akiyalaumu mataifa ya kigeni kwa kuchochea maandamano dhidi ya serikali yake.
Ndugu wapeleka maiti ofisini kushinikiza wapatiwe gharama za mazishi
UONGOZI wa Kiwanda cha African Pride jana ulijikuta ukiwa katika wakati mgumu baada ya kususiwa maiti ofisini hapo.
Ndugu wa marehemu Ibrahim Khalfan ulichukua uamuzi huo, baada ya uongozi huo kushindwa kutimiza ahadi za kugharamia mazishi ya ndugu yao kwa kuwa alipata na umauti akiwa kiwandani hapo kwa kuangukiwa ukuta.
Uongozi kwiandani hapo uliahidi kutoa kiasi cha shilingi milioni 1.5 wka ajili ya kusafirishia mwili huo mkoani Tanga, gharama za chakula ikiwa na sambamba na gharama za mazishi na matokeo yake ndugu, walichukua uamuzi wa kuupeleka mwili huo kiwfandani hapo kwa kutotimiza ahadi yao.
Awali ilidaiwa kuwa Meneja Utawala kiwandani hapo aliyetambulika kwa jina la, Mbaruku Burhan alifika hospitali ya MWananyamala na kuipatia familia hiyo mkeka na jeneza na kisha kuondoka na kuwaacha ndugu hao njia panda.
Ndipo jana majira ya saa 3 walitinga ofisini hapo kujua hatma ya mazishi ya ndugu yao huyo na walipofika walijaribu kuwazuia ndipo vurugu na makonde na kurushiana ngumi zilitembea kujua hatama ya ndugu yao kwa kuwa alipoteza maisha yake akiwa kazini.
Hata hivyo baada ya lisaa limoja na nusu baadae baada ya uongozi huo kuzidiwa na vurugu hizo walitoa kiasi cha shilingi million mbili familia hiyo na kuondoka ofisini hapo na walianza safari ya kusafirisha mwili huo Lushoto mkoani Tanga majira ya jioni
Polisi yahojiwa kutengeneza helicopta kwa Sh 1.2 bn
Exuper Kachenje
WABUNGE wa Kamati ya Hesabu za Serikali, wamehoji matengenezo ya helkopta moja ya jeshi la Polisi kugharimu zaidi ya Sh 1,189,790,560 (dola za Marekani 849,850.4).
Mbali ya kiasi hicho kikubwa cha fedha, wabunge hao wamehoji pia hasara ya zaidi ya Sh 560milioni (dola 400,000) iliyotokana na kucheleweshwa kulipwa kwa gharama za awali za matengenezo ya helkopta hiyo ambazoawali, zilikadiriwa kuwa Sh 774,178,342 (dola 552,984.53).
Helkopta hiyo aina ya Bell 206L namba 5H-PAW, ilipelekwa Afrika Kusini kwa matengenezo, miaka miwili iliyopita ikiwa ni miaka minne tangu iliponunuliwa mwaka 2006.
Wakiongozwa na Makamu Mwenyekiti wa Kamati hiyo, Zainab Vullu, Wabunge Stephen Masele (Shinyanga Mjini) na Ali Mohamed Kessy (Nkasi Kaskazini), walikuwa mstari wa mbele kuwabana polisi ambao katika kikao hicho, waliongozwa na Mkuu wa Jeshi hilo, Inspekta Jenerali Said Mwema na Katibu Mkuu wa Wizara ya Mambo ya Ndani ya Nchi, Mbarak Abdulwakil.
Walikuwa wakijadili taarifa ya ukaguzi wa fedha za jeshi hilo za mwaka ulioishia Juni 30, 2009.
Hata hivyo, taarifa za Mdhibiti na Mkaguzi Mkuu wa Hesabu za Serikali (CAG), zinaonyesha kuwa hakuna uhakika kama matengenezo husika, yamefanyika kwa kuwa hakuna taarifa za kiufundi za kuthibitisha hilo wala uhalali wa kufanyika malipo hayo.
Mhasibu wa Jeshi hilo, Frank Msaki alisema kuwa hati ya kuthibitisha matengenezo ya helkopta hiyo, itapatikana baada ya kukamilika kwa matengenezo na kwamba kuchelewa kukamilika kunatokana na uhaba wa fedha. Alisema juhudi za kupata fedha hizo kutoka Hazina zinaendelea.
Wabunge hao walisema fedha zinazotumika kwa matengenezo ya helkopta hiyo ni nyingi na kushauri iuzwe na kununuliwa helkopta nyingine.
Kamishna wa Polisi, Coldwig Tweve alisema polisi ilituma ombi maalumu la fedha Hazina, ili kulipa madeni yake pamoja na deni hilo la helkopta lakini hawajajibiwa.
Alisema helkopta hiyo ilinunuliwa mwaka 2006 kwa Sh5 bilioni na kwambab hivi sasa bei ya helkopta mpya ya aina hiyo imefikia Sh8.49 bilioni.
Hata hivyo, taarifa ya CAG inaonyesha kuwa kati ya mwaka 2005/2006, polisi ilifanya matumizi ya ziada ya Sh284,265,206 bila ruhusa ikiwamo kufanya manunuzi ya Sh253,603,293. |Msaki alisema walipeleka ombi maalumu Hazina ili waruhusiwe kutumia pesa hizo pamoja na kufanya manunuzi hayo. Polisi inadaiwa zaidi ya Sh26.5 bilioni na askari wake pamoja na wazabuni.
Kamishna Msaidizi wa Bajeti, Wizara ya Fedha, Ramadhani Hamisi alisema Hazina itawasilisha katika kikao kijacho cha Bunge, hati ya matumizi hayo ya dharura.
Inspekta Jenerali Mwema alisema helkopta hiyo ilinunuliwa ili kusaidia utendaji wa kazi za jeshi hilo na kwamba kuharibika kwake kunakwaza utendaji wao wa kazi
Majeshi ya washirika 'yaua raia' Libya
Raia saba wamekufa na wengine 25 kujeruhiwa, wakati majeshi ya anga ya washirika dhidi ya msafara wa wanajeshi wanaomuunga mkono Kanali Gaddafi, katika eneo linalodhibitiwa na waasi nchini LIbya, amesema daktari mmoja akizungumza na BBC.
Silaha za waasi Libya
Daktari Suleiman Refradi amesema shambulio hilo la Jumatano, lilitokea katika kijiji cha Zawia el Argobe, kilomita 15 kutoka Brega.
Shambulio hilo liliteketeza gari lililokuwa limebeba milipuko, na matokeo yake lililipuka na kuteketeza nyumba mbili zilizokuwa karibu.
Wote waliokufa walikuwa na umri wa kati ya miaka 12 na 20, amesema Dokta Refardi. Nato imesema inachunguza tukio hilo.
Taarifa hizi zimekuja wakati kiongozi wa upinzani Mustafa Abdul Jalil akisema waasi watakubali kusimamisha mapigano iwapo wanajeshi wa Kanali Gaddafi wataondoka katika miji mikuu.
Mustafa Abdul Jalil
"Tunakubaliana na kusimamisha mapigano kwa masharti kuwa ndugu zetu katika miji ya magharibi wawe na uhuru wa kuzungumza, na pia majeshi yaliyozingira miji hiyo yaondoke," Amesema kiongozi huyo katika mkutano na waandishi wa habari, katika mji wa Benghazi.
Daktari Refardi ameiambia BBC kuwa shambulio la Jumatano la majeshi ya washirika lililenga lori na tela lake katika mtaa mmoja mjini zawia el Argobe.
Mlipuko kutoka katika gari hilo ulisababisha vifo hasa kutokana na vipande vya chuma vilivyokuwa vikirushwa.
Wanne kati ya waliokufa ni wanawake, wakiwemo watoto watatu kutoka familia moja, wakiwa na umri wa miaka 12 hadi 16, anaripoti Ben Brown wa BBC akiwa Brega.
Wavulana watatu wenye umri wa miaka 14 na 20 pia waliuawa.
Maafisa wa Nato wameiambia BBC kuwa wanafanya uchunguzi " kutazama mtiririko wa matukio kutafuta iwapo kuna taarifa zinazothibitisha madai haya".
Wapinzani uso kwa uso Ivory Coast
Katika mji mkuu, Abidjan, majeshi yanayomwuunga mkono Ouattara yameanza mashambulio kwenye makazi ya Rais yenye ulinzi mkali.
Mwandishi wa BBC John James aliyopo katikati ya mji wa Bouake alisema hii inaonekana ni dakika za majeruhi kwa serikali ya Laurent Gbagbo.
Mkazi wa Abidjan alisema mapigano yalikuwa yakipamba moto katika wilaya ya Cocody kaskazini mwa nchi hiyo, eneo yalipo makazi ya Rais huyo.
Orodha ya majimbo ya Cote d'Ivoire
Abengourou
Abidjan
Aboisso
Adiaké
Adzopé
Agboville
Agnibilekrou
Alépé
Bocanda
Bangolo
Béoumi
Biankouma
Bondoukou
Bongouanou
Bouaflé
Bouaké
Bouna
Boundiali
Dabakala
Dabou
Daloa
Danané
Daoukro
Dimbokro
Divo
Duékoué
Ferkessédougou
Gagnoa
Grand-Bassam
Grand-Lahou
Guiglo
Issia
Jacqueville
Katiola
Korhogo
Lakota
Man
Mankono
Mbahiakro
Odienné
Oumé
Sakassou
San-Pedro
Sassandra
Séguéla
Sinfra
Soubré
Tabou
Tanda
Tiébissou
Tingréla
Tiassalé
Touba
Toulépleu
Toumodi
Vavoua
Yamoussoukro
Zuénoula
Cote d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire (tamka: kot divwar; kifar.: "Pwani la pembe za ndovu") (Kisw. pia: Kodivaa, Ivory Coast), kwa Kiingereza Ivory Coast ni nchi ya Afrika ya Magharibi. Imepakana na Liberia na Guinea upande wa magharibi, Mali na Burkina Faso kaskazini, Ghana kwenye mashariki na Ghuba ya Guinea ya Atlantiki upande wa kusini.
Iliwahi kuwa kati ya nchi tajiri zaidi za Afrika lakini tangu mwaka 2002 uchumi na hali ya maisha zimeharibika kutokana na vita ya wenyewe kwa wenyewe.
Ivory Coast: parts of Abidjan resemble war zone - UN
Parts of Ivory Coast"s main city of Abidjan resemble a "war zone", the UN refugee agency head in the West African nation, Jacques Franquin, told the BBC.
He also said that UNCHR staff in the west of the country had been withdrawn to Abidjan for their safety.
"The situation is deteriorating rapidly," he said.
Tensions have been rising since President Laurent Gbagbo refused to hand power to Alassane Ouattara, widely seen as the winner of November"s poll.
Mr Franquin"s comments come as UN peacekeepers in country say they are overstretched and cannot provide security for all civilians.
Violent clashes
On Thursday, security forces shot dead six women marching in support of Mr Ouattara in the northern Abobo neighbourhood of the city.
"We are overstretched in terms of patrolling. We conducted over 865 patrols last week. You can"t be in every corner of the city," UN spokesman Hamadoun Toure told the BBC.
The pro-Ouattara stronghold of Abobo has seen violent clashes for nearly two weeks and the UN estimates some 200,000 people have fled the area.
"The situation is making it impossible to reach people who are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance," Mr Franquin said.
The UNCHR was setting up networks using local non-governmental organisations to help those displaced from Abobo and in the west of the country, he said.
Mr Toure said the UN had received two helicopter gunships this week and he hoped the situation would improve with the arrival of more peacekeepers.
African Union heads of state who are attempting to resolve the crisis are due to meet in Mauritania later on Friday
Abidjan on brink of civil war: French UN envoy
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – Abidjan is teetering on the edge of civil war, the French ambassador to the United Nations, Gerard Araud, said Friday as the Security Council discussed the worsening crisis in Ivory Coast.
"We are very close to a civil war in Abidjan," Araud said
Gbagbo forces beat back rivals in Abidjan battle
Pro-Gbagbo forces were in control of a strategic military barracks in the northern suburb of Adjame after the heaviest day of fighting since the disputed November 28 presidential poll plunged the west African country into violence.
Forces backing internationally recognised president Alassane Ouattara tried to move south towards central Abidjan from their stronghold in the northern suburbs but met fierce resistance from Gbagbo loyalists, witnesses said.
There was heavy shelling by both sides but no word on casualties.
"We are in control of the camp, we are busy carrying out a sweep of the area, but the fighting was very, very hard," said a police source who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"They were determined, they were numerous," he said, referring to the pro-Ouattara fighters.
Gbagbo troops used heavy weapons and reinforcements from a nearby camp of paramilitary gendarmes, the country's biggest, to beat back the assailants.
The Agban camp houses the gendarmerie command, armored units and quick reaction forces.
The strategic Adjame and Agban camps control access to Plateau district, where the presidential palace is located.
Residents reported sporadic machine-gun fire in the Adjame area overnight.
Terrified residents fled their homes on Tuesday, carrying bundles on their heads and bags in their arms, an AFP journalist reported.
Abidjan, once a vibrant metropolis, has been wracked by violence which has killed at least 400 since the November election, according to the United Nations.
The unrest followed a weekend of clashes in the pro-Ouattara Abobo suburb, where at least 10 people were reported killed after Gbagbo's troops launched a bloody assault on Saturday.
Gbagbo, who has been in power since 2000, has refused to cede power even though the international community, including the African Union, regards Ouattara as the country's legitimate president.
Monday, the special representative in Ivory Coast Choi Young-jin told French radio that there were "promising signs of the beginning of the end" as Gbagbo lost support at home an abroad.
He said the initial impression that Gbagbo had strong support from the military support did "not correspond to the facts as the majority of soldiers are not prepared to fight."
And Choi pointed to signs that international sanctions imposed on Gbagbo were beginning to bite.
"President Gbagbo's camp is beginning to have difficulty in paying its civil servants and even its soldiers."
But Gbagbo has dismissed reported he is losing military support.
State television meanwhile reported that "major decisions" would be taken soon regarding the security situation in the country after Gbagbo held a much publicised meeting with his generals.
Ouattara was meanwhile set to address the nation on "his television station" Tuesday night, his aides said.
A report by the UN Human Rights Council on Monday urged an international probe into human rights violations.
Gbagbo troops "have used excessive and lethal force to repress political opponents, leading the country into turmoil and creating a climate of suspicion, fear and repression," the report said.
The stalemate has observers fearing a return to a 2002-2003 civil war, which split the country into the rebel-held north and government-run south. The November election was meant to reunite the country after years of political turmoil.
Meanwhile outside of Abidjan, New Forces (FN) fighters backing Ouattara held much of the west bordering Liberia as they continued a drive toward San Pedro, the largest cocoa-exporting port in the world
The fog of war in Abidjan
The sound of heavy gunfire is thick in the air in Abidjan this morning; the situation is opaque. Correspondents on the ground for french radio RFI admit on air that they simply can't confirm much about what's going on amid the chaos. The streets are chillingly empty save for combattants. Rumors circulate about where the fighting is, where it's going, and who's in charge.
But what's clear is that the end game between political rivals Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara, both of whom claim to have won last November's presidential election (Ouattara actually did), is every bit as bloody and brutal as feared. After months of talking, this question is being answers with guns.
And to be clear: that's guns on all sides.
There's been a tendency -- an understandable one -- to single out Gbagbo for the atrocities that his troops have committed. As the obsinate one in this political crisis, it's Gbagob who is under sanction by the West and who the African Union is calling upon to step down. It's Gbagbo whose forces fired upon and killed protestors, vividly captured on YouTube. It's Gbagbo's men who have refused to let the U.N. peacekeepers patrol Abidjan. It's Gbagbo who gave weapons to civilians in Abidjan and asked them to defend him. And so naturally, it's Gbagbo who most people expect to end up in the International Criminal Court, paying for his crimes. That's what Ouattara's troop are banking on; they have been ordered to guard his "physical integrity" should he be caught for precisely that reason.
But it's important not to forget that's Ouattara-loyal forces are fighting. And on the battlefield, there's always a risk that atrocities could be committed. Reuters reports that Ouattara-loyal forces have remained disciplined so far, though they have executed some Gbagbo militiamen, according to Human Rights Watch. And yesterday, the United Nations called on Ouattara to "rein in" his forces as they take final control in Abidjan. When I was in Liberia earlier this months, officials in the peacekeeping mission there were adamant that refugees fleeing into that country were of all political persuasions -- meaning that Gbagbo supporting civilians feared for their lives under pro-Ouattara forces, just as the opposite was also true.
The fog of war clouds everything for the moment; it's impossible to tell who is responsible for what -- and against whom. But it's important not to look at all sides of the fighting, because when the dust settles, Cote d'Ivoire is going to be torn apart. Civilians of all political persuasions are going to have horror stories to tell. And if only half the perpetrators are selectively brought to justice, it will be no justice at all; a society divided cannot be stable for long.
Nearly 1 million flee Abidjan amid fears of all-out war
CNN) -- Nearly 1 million residents have fled Abidjan and others are displaced from their homes elsewhere in Ivory Coast's escalating bloodshed that started in December after a disputed presidential election, the United Nations refugee agency said Friday.
Not even that agency has been immune from the violence -- one of its warehouses came under attack Thursday in the town of Guiglo.
"This grave incident demonstrates the accelerated deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Ivory Coast which aggravates the suffering of the civilian population," said a statement from Bernard Valero, the spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry.
France and Nigeria submitted a draft resolution Friday to the U.N. Security Council that calls for sanctions against self-declared President Laurent Gbagbo and several others in his circle. It also urged the banning of heavy weaponry form the Abidjan area.
France's ambassador to the United Nations, Gerard Araud, said there have been many attempts to find a solution to the political stalemate, but Gbagbo has refused to cede power. The international community recognizes Gbagbo's challenger Alassane Ouattara as the legitimate winner.
Araud said the Security Council will take up the draft resolution next week.
A top U.N. official told the Security Council Friday blamed most of the violence on forces loyal to Gbagbo.
"The human rights situation is very grave, with a high number of human rights violations reported," said Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Atul Khare about the violence in Abidjan and also in the western regions of Ivory Coast.
Khare showed Security Council members pictures of some of the worst attacks in the past three months including the killing of seven women that was captured in a chilling video posted online. He also detailed an incident in which he said Gbagbo loyalists fired mortar shells into a market in Abobo, killing more than 25 people.
A spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said the massive displacement of people is being fueled by fears of all-out war, not unfamiliar to the people of Ivory Coast. Divided over issues of land reform, identity and rights of citizenship, the west African nation exploded in a civil war in 2002.
The country was back on track to progress when the November election results shattered the peace.
Post election clashes have left at least 462 dead since December, some in grisly fashion, according to the United Nations. Human Rights Watch said a steady crescendo of abuses including arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture, enforced disappearances and politically motivated rape.
"Bus terminals are overcrowded with passengers desperate to get seats on vehicles heading to northern, central and eastern parts of the country where there has been no fighting so far," said Melissa Fleming, the refugee agency spokeswoman.
People are living with no electricity, clean water or adequate health care, said Carole Coeur, a field coordinator for Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF or in English, Doctors Without Borders) in western Ivory Coast.
"There are no normal conditions of life," she said. "It's very difficult."
Coeur said medicine was in short supply -- many facilities have been looted -- and few hospitals -- many and clinics were operating because medical staff have fled. There are few places for people to receive treatment for illnesses like malaria and diarrhea.
Only one hospital remains open in Abidjan's restive Abobo neighborhood, where street battles have erupted frequently.
Dr. Okanta Chibuzo, an MSF emergency doctor who recently returned from an assignment in Abidjan, said he heard daily gunfire and admitted 10 to 15 people every day. MSF teams treated 66 people with bullet or shell wounds. None could be brought to the hospital by ambulance.
"Some of the wounded were brought in trucks that usually transport food," Chibuzo said. "All of them were urgent cases."Patients with common illnesses also need care. However, access is very limited, particularly for children with acute illnesses, pregnant women and people living with chronic diseases."
Humanitarian agencies including the United Nations and MSF have been struggling to help people -- often it has proved difficult to deliver aid because of chaos and security risks.
Ivory Coast's crisis is also affecting its neighbors. Liberia, where nearly 100,000 people have fled, is especially concerned that its own fragile eight-year peace could be threatened by events in Ivory Coast, Fleming said.
With the conflicts in Libya and the Middle East, the world has turned away from the crisis in Ivory Coast, said humanitarian workers. But to neglect it could lead to catastrophe, they warned.
Tensions Continue Between Christians And Muslims In Ivory Coast
AGBOVILLE, IVORY COAST - MARCH 3: A Dioula youth prays in the Grand Mosque March 3, 2003 in Agboville, north of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The civil war has divided the country between the more prosperous Christians in the south and the poorer Muslims in the north, with the latest clashes leaving five mosques and three churches burned and about 15 people dead, including Christians and Muslims. Demonstrations broke out in January after a French-brokered peace plan was announced to quell the on-again-off-again civil war, sparked in 2000 by an attempted military uprising to topple President Laurent Gbagbo, accused of exploiting religious and ethnic divisions
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