Cote d’Ivoire beefs security along border with Liberia to avert attacks

In the last two weeks, some villages along the Ivorian-Liberia border have been under attack.

The Ivorian Government has agreed with Liberia to boost border security in order to avert further attacks in the western part of the country.

In a statement made available on Thursday in Abidjan, the Ivorian Minister of Information and Communication, Bruno Kone, described the attacks in the west as “worrisome.”

“Our government and that of Liberia have agreed to combine efforts to ensure adequate security in the border area,” he said.

He said the attacks would not in any way distract government from its determination to provide security for the citizenry.

“As a government, we have decided that we will provide military presence around the region to ensure that calm return to the area,” he said.

The minister said that government has asked local authorities to report suspicious movements capable of disrupting public peace to law enforcement agents.

Zilebly, Toubly and Petit Guiglo, villages in Toupepleu and Blolequin local councils have been attacked at three different times in the past two weeks. About twenty deaths have been reported in the course of the attacks in the villages located near the Ivorian-Liberia border. The attacks have rekindled fears and caused residents of the villages to flee their homes in search of safety.

Cote d’Ivoire was hit by a post-election violence that left about 3,000 persons dead and many displaced. Several months after the end of the crisis, there have been pockets of armed attacks within the country, especially in the west.