ICC wants Ivory Coast war crimes probed

 The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court will ask judges on Thursday for permission to launch a probe into post-election  war crimes allegedly committed in Ivory Coast, his office said.

   Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo “will request authorization from the judges to open an investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Cote d’Ivoire,” it said in a statement on Wednesday.

   “If the chamber grants the prosecutor authorization to investigate, an independent and impartial investigation will be opened into alleged crimes committed in Côte d’Ivoire,” it noted.

   The office said Moreno-Ocampo will ask ICC judges “for either summons to appear or arrest warrants for those believed to be most responsible for alleged crimes in Côte de Ivoire,” based on evidence collected.

   UN investigators believe about 3,000 people died in the bloody post-election crisis before internationally recognised leader Alassane Ouattara finally ousted his rival Laurent Gbagbo following  disputed presidential elections last November.

   Tens of thousands more have still to return to the homes they fled.

   Fighters on both sides of the conflict have been accused of war crimes, and Ouattara’s government has come under fire from rights campaigners claiming only the losing side was being investigated.

   The ICC has expressed particular concern about reported massacres in the western Ivory Coast.

   Several hundred people were reportedly massacred in the western town of Duekoue, with forces loyal to rivals Gbagbo and Ouattara blaming each other.

   Human Rights Watch has said that forces loyal to Ouattara killed  or raped hundreds of people and burned villages in a rampage late March.

   Ouattara, backed by much of the international community, took power when forces loyal to him, with support from UN and French troops, captured Gbagbo after a fierce battle in Abidjan in April.

   Gbagbo refused to quit power after UN-certified results showed he had lost the presidential election.

   Ouattara was sworn in on May 6.

   Ivory Coast has been under preliminary examination by Moreno-Ocampo’s office since October 1, 2003 after its government accepted the jurisdiction of the ICC.

   Last December, Ouattara confirmed acceptance of the ICC jurisdiction for alleged crimes committed in the aftermath of the November 28 poll.

   He asked the ICC to investigate the most serious crimes, while the Ivorian justice system will handle lesser crimes.