Ivory Coast's old foes 'rearming'

Former foes from Ivory Coast's 2002 civil war are rearming in defiance of an arms embargo, UN experts say.

A UN report accuses both the rebel-held north and the government-controlled south of stocking up on weapons, a month before a presidential election.

It also says neighbouring Burkina Faso is systematically transferring weapons and ammunition to the rebels. The country was split in two by the civil war but has been ruled by a power-sharing government since 2007.

A presidential election is scheduled for 29 November, but election officials say it is likely to be delayed again. The country has been edging towards a political resolution to its troubles, but efforts to disarm rebels appear to have foundered.

"Despite the arms embargo northern and southern Ivorian parties are rearming or re-equipping with related material," a report by a UN panel of experts said.

The UN Security Council is due to renew its arms embargo against the country this week, but the report raised the possibility of renewed serious conflict if the political situation deteriorates.

"[We] cannot exclude a situation in which armed violence may escalate rapidly, particularly in the north," the report said.

The authors of the report urged Burkina Faso to investigate the transfer of weapons to rebels in the north.

Burkina Faso was accused of supporting rebel forces during the 2002 civil war, but its leader Blaise Compaore helped broker the UN-backed peace process which led to the unity government.

The conflict erupted when a coup attempt split the country in half, with rebels holding on to the north and the government controlling the south.