many members of the council had wanted to declare alassane ouattara the winners fo for days. >> russia was saying to back one candidate would not be the mandate. finally, those misgivings were overcome and the security council has backed alassane ouattara and called on players to respect the outcome and has condemned -- repeated its warnings that it is ready to consider sanctions against anyone who obstructs the work there or who threatens the peace process. >> there seems to be a stalemate between alassane ouattara and laurent gbagbo. what happens next? >> no one knows what will happen next. the security council has suggested that it is willing to consider sanctions, that would be one form of trying to get laurent gbagbo to step down. at the moment, the plan is to build a diplomatic pressure is much as possible. as the security council statement is important -- you did have many countries such as the u.s. and france saying the opposition candidate has won. the security council has backed all the international calls. laurent gbagbo has almost no friends outside the country. the securit

calls alassane ouattara president of ivory coast. an italian anarchist group clinchers possibility parcels that exploded at the swiss and chilean embassies in rome. get off the road. beijing makes a bid to stop the gridlock. welcome to "bbc news," broadcast on pbs in america, and around the globe. home for the holidays. u.s. officials tried to reassure the public that it is safe to travel despite the political gap earlier in the week. disagreements over who should pay for the church of the nativity threaten to undermine christmas spirit in bethlehem. the united nations general assembly has recognized alassane ouattara as the winner of ivory coast's disputed presidential election. the vote took place last month, but the incumbent, laurent gbagbo is to, refusing to stand down. the central african bank has now blocked his access to ivory coast funds, and the u.s. secretary of state has repeated her call to mr. gbagbp to step down. >> the violence in ivory coast is stirring serious international concern. it has spread since the week afte

but he has refused to hand over to his opponent, alassane ouattara, the u.n. says clearly won the polls. the luxury hotel where the government in waiting has taken refuge, saying they fear for their lives. the united nations protective detail and guards the government the international community has recognized. the soldiers loyal to laurent gbagbo controlled the back roads, so the only safe way to get there is by helicopter. the government in waiting says its supporters of the detail are being targeted by those forces, a charge partially backed by u.n. investigators. >> you can see here -- all of us are in this hotel and you're the only ones protected by the international forces. mr. the people outside are threatened by militiamen. >> -- most of the people outside are threatened by militiamen. >> this is as much about form and substance in the government in waiting cabinet meeting. laurent gbagbo still holds most of the power in ivory coast. the situation has been going on for weeks now. almost the entire international community, and crucially most african cou

alassane ouattara is recognized as president-elect but not today. their decision to move closer to the protected hotel brought a standoff. both candidates have declared themselves the winner and set up parallel governments. >> the situation is set for country which has been plunged into a crisis situation. we thought with these elections, we would leave the crisis behind. it seems to be we have gone deeper into it. >> the e.u. along with others spend hundreds of millions of dollars providing security and funding for these elections. one of the world's most expensive ever held per voter. too much money to sit back and watch someone cling to power after the commission announced the opposition candidate was the winner. >> he has decided to adopt targeted restricted measures against those who are obstructing peace and reconciliation and the outcome of the electoral process. >> these measures will include a vosisa van andban and freez. e. >> with little negotiation going on, it appears that the tension will not disappear quickly. >> hillary clinton has u

says clearly won the polls, alassane ouattara. the united nations protect the hotel and guards the government that the international community has recognized. the soldiers loyal to laurent gbagbo control the access roads, so the only safe way to get there is by helicopter. the government in waiting says support outside the hotel is being targeted by those forces, charges partially backed by u.n. investigators. >> all these people are threatened. you see all these people in the hotel. we are the only ones protected by the international forces. >> the cabinet meeting of the government in waiting -- this is as much about form as substance, because the truth is laurent gbagbo still holds most of the reins of power in ivory coast. the situation has been going on for weeks now. almost the entire international community -- the european union, the united states, and crucially most african countries -- recognize the president as working in an air-conditioned tent in a hotel. united nations says it will continue to supply and protect itself

they say that the opposition leader, this man, alassane ouattara, was the winner. the leaders were clear. they have told mr. gbagbo that he has to leave. this could be a long, drawn-out affair. the world is watching to see how africa deals with this crisis, but the on voice of the democratic nations, who have come to the ivory coast, say they are determined and able to sort this out -- but the envoys of the democratic nations say they are determined. for now, the talks are on. it has been said in no uncertain terms that one way or another, there will be a democratic outcome here, and that may take more than just talk. mark doyle, bbc news, ivory coast. >> a peacekeeper in the ivory coast was wounded in one neighborhood. the convoy was transported 22 peacekeepers. in a statement, the u.n. says it strongly condemns the attack and reiterates its desire to continue. in central nigeria, at least 80 people and killed in a series of bombings and subsequent reprisals. the bombing began on christmas eve in an area where there has been hostility in recent years. a group said

. -- to accept defeat in the election to his rival, alassane ouattara." >>> wikileaks alleges that the mayor of kingston collaborated for years with an indicted gangster. the cable said he did this in return for lucrative government contracts. >>> the former argentine military leader jorge videla has been sentenced to life in prison for crimes against humanity. a court found him guilty of murdering dissidents during the country's military rule between 1976-1983. the general has been accused of being the main architect of what has become known as argentina's dirty war. that and many other stories are to be found on the bbc website. >>> south korea plans to begin its biggest ever winter live fire exercises it shortly, held that a sensitive time as tension has increased since the north attacked south korea's island. earlier, i spoke with our correspondent in seoul about what might happen next. >> today's firepower displayed is the largest to ever be held for the south. it sounds dramatic, but it is more of a media event involving 800 soldiers at a live firing range 30 kilometers

they say opposition candidate alassane ouattara was clearly the victor in the november 28th election. the regional leaders who visited ivory coast yesterday had also threatened military intervention to force gbagbo to step down. but today, after consulting in nigeria, they said they will continue talks with him next week. in a statement, nigerian president goodluck jonathan said, "it is dialogue that will solve issues. the dialogue is on." for ivory coast, the political crisis is the latest in a long series of problems, including a recent civil war. and, there are fears the former french colony-- also known as cote d'ivoire-- will again be engulfed in violence. at least 173 people were reported killed in the days following the disputed election. a tense calm has prevailed since then, but government supporters attacked a convoy of u.n. peacekeepers yesterday. one of the soldiers was wounded. fearing a full-scale conflict, the u.s. is now planning for the possible evacuation of its embassy in abidjan. for more we turn to christopher fomunyoh, senior associate for central and west africa

we need alassane ouattara. >> woodruff: today's u.n. report said at least 173 people have already been killed in post- election violence. it also cited hundreds of arrests and dozens of cases of torture. the u.n. top human rights official in ivory coast called for a peaceful resolution. >> we are not going to solve the current political crisis by extra-judicial killings, by looting and burning, by illegal arrests and detention, by enforced disappearances. >> woodruff: if conflict erupts, it may involve the 10,000 u.n. peacekeepers in ivory coast. over the weekend, president gbagbo ordered them to leave. they refused, and on monday, the top u.n. envoy in the country, said government supporters had threatened his troops. >> ( translated ): president gbagbo camp started sending armed men to the personal houses of united nations employees, >> ( translated ): i'm not happy about the extension of the u.n. here in the ivory coast. they come here only to separate and make problems between the ivorian army and the u.n. military. we want them to

they protect the hotels, sheltering the opposition government of alassane ouattara. thein the eyes of gbagbo's supporters, the rebels. >> we see the strategy to promotvoke the mission. we are sending appeals. [unintelligible] unity personenel are out of therheir home. >> he said there should be no doubt he has won the election. >> the head of the electoral commission went to the hotel, the headquarters of my challenger. going against all the laws of our country, he announced the results of the elections which were incorrect. the international community has accepted these results and declared war on the ivory coast. prexy has the support of the constitutional council. >> he has the support of the constitutional council. international reports [unintelligible] the un said 50 people have been killed so far. the crisis has been bad for business. in the second largest economy. this is a fragile region. they depend on what happens here. this is a region that is trying to recover from some of the worst civil wars. they are looking to leave behind decades of military rule. th

this man, opposition leader alassane ouattara is the letter. leaders have been clear and told laurent gbagbo he has to leave or there will be a military intervention. most countries do not have the military equipment to mont any kind of attack. this could be a long drawn-out affair. >> the world is watching to see how africa deals with this crisis. the envoys of the democratic nations to come to the ivory coast said they are determined and able to sort this out. >> an election was conducted and that is why -- the permission to [unintelligible] >> the talks aren't. africa has said there will be a democratic outcome. that may take more than just talk. >> marder joins us live. let's talk of the use of force. what is the feeling there? how likely is this? >> if it happens, it will take a while to organize. [inaudible] it could take awhile. also, those countries will be doing everything they can to avoid the outcome. the could get him to stand down. there were a series of attacks. and it indicates that he remains -- [inaudible] >> thanks. two german

his opponent, alassane ouattara, is widely recognized as the winner of the election. the african union says that they should use force to remove laurent gbagbo. and court in france has handed down jail sentences for 50 neils -- 15 years to life for people who serve under the ruler pinochet. they were found guilty in the absence of the disappearance of french citizens in the 1970's. caps on non-european migrant workers put up by the british government have been called on lawful. the accord says that the government is trying to avoid parliamentary scrutiny. now belarus holds a presidential election this weekend and there are few doubts about the outcome. for the fast 15 years, the country has been ruled by alexander lukashenko. the man is often referred to as the last dictator. they were once seen as a partner to russia and a counterweight to the emerging democracies in eastern europe. he might be trying to mend fences with the west. he is giving the opposition candidate to greater freedom to campaign. they are planning mass demonstrations when his expected victory is d

in the presidential election last month the victory of opposition candidate alassane ouattara was announcedral commission. however, the constitutional council overturned the result and declared incumbent president laurent gbagbo as the winner. on thursday ouattara's supporters staged a protest rally in the main city of abijan. clashes took place after the security forces began to disperse tear gas. conflicts between rival supporters are spreading across the country and some have reportedly turned into shooting wars. there's growing concern that the unrest may develop into a full-fledged civil war as the two candidates continue to claim victory. >>> the japanese government says it will postpone the next stage test operation of the monju fast breeder nuclear reactor for six months. the delay is due to a technical problem. the reactor in fukui prefecture riz yooumd operations after a 14-year shut down due to a sodium leakage accident and fire in 1995. but when the operator was stopped for inspections a three-ton device fell inside the facility and became stuck. science and technology minister

incumbent president laurent gbagbo has refused to relinquish power after losing to alassane ouattara more than a month ago. britian's foreign secretary william hague offered to support the u.n. if force is needed to oust gbagbo, and if west african nations ask for help. leaders of a 15 nation bloc of african countries have prepared plans to forcefully take over power if talks fail. a bomb exploded at a nigerian army barracks today, killing at least 30 people. nigerian state television reported it happened in the capital city, abuja in a beer garden as people gathered to celebrate the new year. today's bombing follows a series of christmas eve explosions in central nigeria that killed more than 30 people. officials in new orleans ordered residents of the last remaining fema trailers to move out or face steep fines. only 221 of the trailers are left out of the more than 23,000 that were put in place as temporary homes for hurricane katrina victims. city administrators described the existing trailers as blight, and want them removed by march. a ground beef recall is in effect for possib

the orient people have chosen alassane ouattara. it was a clear statement recognized president ouattara, and 11 heads called on the president to abide by the election results and allow ouattara to take the seat as the head of government. we continue to watch the situation closely and continue to call on the existing government to do the right thing. begin the process of a peaceful transition of power and lead to a, you know, peaceful stable solution for the future of cote d 'lvoire. last week there was a let encouraging him to respect the results. special envoy scott gration is in khartoum to discuss the sudan referendum and agreement to reach the cpa on the parties the way ahead. and he met today with sudanese minister of defense, general abdel rahim mohammed hussein and also special envoy mikhail margelov. and the visit in darfur. we also continue to monitor very closely the situation in haightly. -- haiti. we stand ready to support efforts to thoughly review so it's consistent with the haitian people, as expressed by the votes. w