Ivory Coast leader rules out poll

Fears of a return to war are never far away

Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo has said that a presidential election planned for 30 October cannot go ahead because rebels have not disarmed.

Speaking in a televised address, the president said the constitution allowed him to remain in office beyond then.

Earlier, Mr Gbagbo said he would not attend a regional summit on Ivory Coast on Friday.

The talks in Nigeria are a fresh attempt to find a solution to the three-year-old Ivorian crisis.

Ivory Coast has been split in two since a failed coup and subsequent armed uprising by rebels who now control the north of the country.

Mediator role

Earlier this month, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan voiced concern over the lack of preparation for the poll, and sharply criticised leaders on both sides for their lack of progress towards peace.

Both the rebels and opposition parties had rejected the poll, saying it could not be free and fair if held on 30 October.

Mr Gbagbo's spokesman did not explain why Mr Gbagbo would not travel to the Nigerian capital, Abuja.

The summit has been called on the wishes of President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and it is possible that South Africa, the current mediator, will be asked to withdraw from the role, or at least take a back seat.

The New Forces rebels, who seized the north of the country in September 2002, are refusing to work with South Africa.

However, South Africa says Mr Gbagbo has done everything asked of him, in contrast to the armed and unarmed opposition.