Continue reading the main storyRegional body Ecowas has threatened to remove Laurent Gbagbo by force

Ivory Coast's incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo is expelling the British and Canadian ambassadors, a statement on state television has said.

It said the action was being taken as a reciprocal measure. The UK said it did not accept that the move was valid.

Mr Gbagbo has refused to step down despite rival Alassane Ouattara gaining international recognition as November's presidential election winner.

Mr Ouattara has urged West African special forces to remove Mr Gbagbo.

The West African regional body Ecowas has threatened to force Mr Gbagbo out but has said it wants to try mediation efforts first.

Mr Gbagbo still has the public backing of the army and control of state media.

The UK and Canada are among the nations who have expelled ambassadors appointed by Mr Gbagbo in order to replace them with diplomats chose by Mr Outtara.

The BBC's John James, in Ivory Coast's main city Abidjan, says the expulsions are largely symbolic.

The UK ambassador, who acts as envoy for several countries in the region, is based in neighbouring Ghana, and the Canadian embassy will still be able to carry out its normal functions, our correspondent says.

The state television statement said the UK and Canadian envoys were being expelled as their countries no longer recognised Mr Gbagbo's ambassadors.

"Through the application of the principle of reciprocity governing diplomatic relations, the ministry informs Madame Marie Isabelle Massip that her accreditation as Canadian ambassador in Ivory Coast is ended.

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Alassane Ouattara: "The day Laurent Gbagbo leaves everyone will be happy"

"For the same reasons, the Foreign Ministry informs ambassador Nicholas James Westcott that his accreditation as United Kingdom and Northern Ireland ambassador is also ended."

The UK Foreign Office responded by saying: "The British government has recognised Mr Alassane Ouattara as the democratically elected president of Cote D'Ivoire.

"It recognises the legitimacy of statements made by, or on behalf of, his government. The British government does not accept the validity of statements made by others."

The UK withdrew recognition of Mr Gbagbo's envoy on 31 December and Canada did the same on 29 December. France has said it will recognise Mr Ouattara's envoy.

The UN has also recognised Mr Ouattara's appointee, Youssoufou Bamba, as Ivory Coast ambassador to the UN.

Separately on Thursday, the US announced it had frozen the assets of Mr Gbagbo, his wife and three aides.

It said it was barring US citizens from financial dealings with Mr Gbagbo.

Meanwhile, Ecowas has already started drawing up plans for a regional intervention force.

Our correspondent says it is not clear how ready the countries in the region are to contribute troops to an intervention that could potentially face a regular army numbering 18,000 men.

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• Deadly clashes in Ivory Coast

However, Mr Ouattara, who has many supporters in northern Ivory Coast, said it was just a question of removing Mr Gbagbo from power and taking control of key buildings like the presidential palace.

"Legitimate force doesn't mean a force against Ivorians," Mr Ouattara told reporters on Thursday, AFP news agency reports.

"It's a force to remove Laurent Gbagbo and that's been done elsewhere, in Africa and in Latin America, there are non-violent special operations which allow simply to take the unwanted person and take him elsewhere."

However, Ecowas does not have the sophisticated equipment and personnel needed for a special forces operation, our correspondent says.

The former colonial power France, which has 900 soldiers on the ground, says it will not intervene.

There are an estimated 10,000 UN troops in Ivory Coast - and the mission has sent a request to the UN Security Council for an extra 1,000 to 2,000 soldiers.

Mr Ouattara remains behind a blockade at a hotel in Abidjan, protected by UN peacekeepers and New Forces former rebels who control the north of the country.

November's election was intended to reunify the country, which has been divided since a 2002 conflict.

Mr Ouattara was initially proclaimed the winner by the country's election commission - a verdict backed by the UN, which helped organise the poll.

But the country's Constitutional Council, headed by an ally of Mr Gbagbo, later ruled that he had won, citing voting irregularities in the north.

Continue reading the main storyWill West African leaders convince Laurent Gbagbo (left) to cede power?

by Rashida Adjani, BBC News, for the BBC's Biodun Iginla

A delegation of African leaders is in Ivory Coast in a new effort to persuade its incumbent president to step down following disputed elections.

Leaders from Benin, Cape Verde, Sierra Leone and Kenya are expected to make an amnesty offer to Laurent Gbagbo if he quits, the BBC has learned.

West African states have said they will remove him by force if he does not.

The UN and the African Union regard Mr Gbagbo's rival, Alassane Ouattara, as the winner of the 28 November election.

The heads of state who travelled to Ivory Coast are Benin's Boni Yayi, Sierra Leone's Ernest Bai Koroma and Cape Verde's Pedro Pires - who represent the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).

It is their second visit in less than a week. Last Tuesday they flew to Abidjan, Ivory Coast's commercial capital, but failed to convince Mr Gbagbo to stand down.

On Monday they were joined by Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, representing the African Union.

"He will seek a peaceful settlement to the election crisis... and seek an assurance of safety and security for Mr Laurent Gbagbo and his supporters, if he agrees to cede power," Mr Odinga's office said in a statement.

He was one of the first African leaders to call for military intervention to oust Mr Gbagbo.

Sierra Leone's Information Minister, Ibrahim Ben-Kargbo, said the leaders would tell Mr Gbagbo to step down and did not intend to negotiate with him.

But a source within the African delegation told the BBC that the incumbent would be offered a legal amnesty, as well as a guarantee that his financial assets would be secure if he left office.

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Analysis

John JamesBBC News, Abidjan

Few observers have any hope that a compromise can be found that would see Laurent Gbagbo hand over power to his rival, Alassane Ouattara.

The Ecowas mission will almost certainly go over the various deals that have been offered for exile and amnesty but, in his New Year message, Mr Gbagbo said he would not cede power and insisted that he was the rightfully elected president.

He still has control of state television and the public backing of the army, but Mr Ouattara has the support of most West African leaders, who have already told the West African central bank to give him control over the state accounts.

The leaders will report back to the current chairman of the Ecowas region, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, on Tuesday, at which point a decision will be made on the way forward.

However a spokesman for Mr Gbagbo, Ohoupa Sessegnong, told the BBC the offer would be rejected.

"It's not about Laurent Gbagbo seeking some sort of offer. It's about Laurent Gbagbo having won the elections in the Cote D'Ivoire," Mr Sessegnong told the BBC. "Now it appears that the opposition supported by the French and their allies do not want to accept that."

The UN says some 200 people have been killed or have disappeared in the past month - mostly supporters of Mr Ouattara.

UN peacekeepers in the country say security forces have twice blocked them from visiting the site of one of two alleged mass graves.

The UN has also expressed concern that some of the homes of opponents to Mr Gbagbo have been marked to identify the ethnicity of their occupants.

The Gbagbo camp has denied sanctioning abuses.

UN peacekeepers are protecting Mr Ouattara, who is holed up at a hotel in Abidjan. Mr Gbagbo has called on the 10,000-strong UN force to leave the country.

The election was intended to reunify Ivory Coast - the world's leading cocoa producer - which has been divided since a 2002 conflict.

Mr Ouattara was initially proclaimed the winner by the country's election commission - a verdict backed by the UN, which helped organise the poll.

But the Constitutional Council, headed by an ally of Mr Gbagbo, said he had won, citing irregularities in the north which is controlled by former rebels supporting Mr Ouattara.

Both men have been sworn in as president.

Continue reading the main storyUN peacekeepers have come under attack, and Laurent Gbagbo has told them to leave

by Biodun Iginla, BBC News

The UN has accused Ivory Coast state media - controlled by strongman Laurent Gbagbo - of inciting hatred against foreign peacekeepers.

UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy said state TV channel RTI was pumping out lies, and blamed it for a machete attack on UN personnel on Tuesday.

Mr Gbagbo has so far resisted UN calls to step down as president and make way for his rival Alassane Ouattara.

Regional leaders are holdings talks aimed at breaking the impasse.

The presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde, sent by regional bloc Ecowas, came away on Wednesday without a deal.

Ecowas, which had threatened in a statement to send in troops to force Mr Gbagbo to step down, said the three men would return to the country on 3 January for more talks.

An election last month resulted in both Mr Gbagbo and Mr Outtara being declared the winner, and each being sworn in as president.

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Analysis

John JamesBBC News, Abidjan

It's good to talk, they say, and even though all the mediation efforts so far seem to have yielded little fruit, Ecowas are prepared to give more time to discussions.

On the ground, as people await the prospect of an intervention force with a good degree of fear, life continues to be disrupted by the transport strike called in support of Mr Ouattara.

The indefinite strike was called on Monday, but only really kicked in the next day. For those coming from outlying areas of Abidjan without access to private vehicles, it is extremely difficult getting into work. Reports from elsewhere in the country suggest the strike has left most towns quiet.

On Wednesday, the UN solidified its support for Mr Outtara by formally welcoming his choice as the country's ambassador to the UN.

And in a news conference, Mr Le Roy launched an unprecedented attack on state TV.

"The declarations I hear on the RTI are concerning us and shocking us, because they clearly instigate the population to turn against ONUCI [UN mission in Ivory Coast]," he said.

He said an incident where a peacekeeper was wounded with a machete when his patrol was encircled by angry crowds was a "direct consequence of all the appeals to hatred, lies and anti-ONUCI propaganda".

Despite international support, Mr Outtara and his Prime Minister Guillaume Soro remain holed up in a hotel in the main city of Abidjan, protected by UN forces.

Supporters of Mr Gbagbo, known as "young patriots", have threatened to storm the hotel.

Young patriots leader Charles Ble Goude, who is also Mr Gbagbo's youth minister, also warned Ecowas not to send troops.

"They should prepare themselves very well because we are thinking about totally liberating our country, and soon I will launch the final assault," he said.

Mr Ble Goude is renowned for his fiery rhetoric and has reportedly made such threats before without carrying them out.

But analysts have warned that inflammatory rhetoric could help push the nation back into civil war, seven years after a previous conflict resulted in it being divided between a rebel-run north and government-controlled south.

The UN has some 9,500 peacekeepers in the country.

Mr Gbagbo has told them to leave, accusing them of interfering in Ivorian affairs.

But the UN has refused to do so. It says at least 173 people have died in violence and scores of others have been tortured since the 28 November elections.

Almost 20,000 people - mostly women and children - have fled Ivory Coast for neighbouring Liberia, fearing further unrest.

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by Rashida Adjani, BBC News, for the BBC's Biodun Iginla

The BBC's John James said talks may go on to avoid military action against Gbagbo.

Three West African leaders will return to Ivory Coast next week for more negotiations to end the impasse over last month's disputed elections.

Cape Verde's president, one of the delegation, made the comment after they failed to persuade incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo to stand down.

They had hoped Mr Gbagbo would agree to cede power to Alassane Ouattara, widely considered to be the true winner.

The regional body Ecowas has threatened to use force if he refuses to go.

State-controlled TV has indicated that several million African nationals from other countries living in Ivory Coast might be at risk if threats from African countries of military intervention against Mr Gbagbo continue.

The presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde had travelled to the main city, Abidjan, as representatives of Ecowas.

There is tension in Abidjan over possible military intervention, and prayer sessions have been held

The three men are now in Nigeria to brief the chairman of Ecowas, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.

Their visit was being seen as a final chance to urge Mr Gbagbo to peacefully cede to Mr Ouattara - who is currently holed up in a hotel in the city protected by around 800 UN peacekeepers.

Few details of the separate talks with the two rivals have emerged.

But Mr Gbagbo appears to be reinforcing his position.

One of his advisers told the BBC Mr Gbagbo was still the democratically elected president and that the Ecowas intervention was part of an "international plot" against him.

The BBC's John James in Abidjan says the three presidents that visited represent some of the smallest countries in West Africa, but they are seen as being on good terms with Mr Gbagbo, particularly Cape Verde, which has close ties to Angola, Mr Gbagbo's strongest international ally.

The office of Cape Verde President Pedro Pires said the mission would return "next week", AFP news agency reports.

The foreign minister in Mr Gbagbo's cabinet, Alcide Djedje, said the meeting would be "around 2 January", Reuters news agency quotes him as saying.

Earlier on Tuesday, a UN peacekeeper was wounded in the arm with a machete when his convoy was attacked by a crowd in a Gbagbo stronghold.

Mr Gbagbo has accused the UN - which has some 9,500 peacekeepers in the country - of interfering in Ivorian affairs and has ordered it to leave.

The UN has refused to do so. It says at least 173 people have died in violence and scores of others have been tortured since the 28 November elections.

Violence broke out after Mr Ouattara's victory was overturned by the Constitutional Council, a body headed by an ally of Mr Gbagbo, citing claims that results were rigged in the north.

Almost 20,000 people - mostly women and children - have fled Ivory Coast for neighbouring Liberia, fearing further unrest.

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) says 15,120 people from villages in western Ivory Coast are known to have crossed the border and another 4,000 arrivals have been reported.

Our correspondent says Ivorians had hoped these elections would close the chapter on the country's most difficult 10 years, but instead they have opened up a new period of instability.