.bmp)
.bmp)
Addis Ababa - The African Union on Friday praised progress towards peace in Ivory Coast and called for increased efforts to draw up electoral lists in preparation for polls.The West African country has been split in two since a 2002 rebellion against President Laurent Gbagbo, with international peacekeepers holding the line between the two sides.The statement said the AU's Peace and Security Council had endorsed recent peace accords between Gbagbo and Guillaume Soro, leader of the rebels holding the north of the country, who is now prime minister.The council hailed "the encouraging developments occurring" in Ivory Coast, "in particular the efforts aimed at promoting confidence" such as the removal of a buffer zone across the country, the deployment of joint police units, and the establishment of an integrated command centre for implementing military and security aspects of the accords.It urged the two sides "to take all steps required" to complete voter registration, disarm and dismantle militias, re-establish state authority throughout the country and unify and restructure defence and security forces.As in the days of Noah....
