alassane ouattara remain sealed off from the rest of the country by military checkpoints. alassane ouattara said he preferred a peaceful solution but dismissed negotiations saying he had to leavlead. >> when we take on responsibilities, we do it whenever they circumstances. i have formed a government and we're trying to govern as best we can and to look at issues including security, finances, communication. it is not easy, but we're doing our best. there appears to be a standoff. laurent gbagbo is not moving and the there you. what keeps you going? >> i have to say the situation is the standoff. it is he who was hanging onto power. 54% of the population voted for me. in transparent and democratic elections. elections that were supervised by the united nations. it is laurent gbagbo who was hanging on and causing the standoff and it is unfortunate. >> to get out of this situation, there have been several suggestions. there have been talk of economic sanctions and the military option. today's question is, do you think the time has come for the military option? there's nothing

says should be in the presidential palace, alassane ouattara. he is widely seen as having won the election. for now, he is holed up in a hotel and relying on u.n. protection. diplomatic effort to help them by neighboring countries in the west african bloc have so far failed. now he has suggested a military solution. >> send in special forces with the objective. gbagbo will not be removed. >> gbagbo is doggedly hanging on to power. the diplomatic spat with britain and canada is unlikely to worry him. for now, u.n. troops have not been tested too much. if there is a military intervention, keeping the peace could suddenly get much harder. bbc news. >> the banking bonus season in britain used weeks away and we have learned ministers are receiving payouts worth billions of pounds. negotiations with the top bankers are having ripple effects. robert has this exclusive report. >> the city of london and big banks, vital to the british economy. ministers have been talking about cheeps and whether they're doing enough to support the recovery, and whether t

certain who won the elections, the opposition leader laurent gbagbo -- the opposition leader alassane ouattara. there also sure about which camp is responsible for the violence. >> this is the defense forces of the ivory coast who are currently controlled and commanded by laurent gbagbo's camp. >> this camp is still firmly inside the presidential palace resisting international pressure to leave. >> i have a question i would like ask, if i said that i would leave office right now, who could provide an assurance that this would increase and not bring in even greater violence -- who could provide an insurance that this would provide peace and not even greater violence? >> some say that he is simply stalling. >> time for him to recognize that he must go. let me make very clear that he should not underestimate the determination of the international community that the will of the people will be recognized and a democratic transfer of power will take place. >> if that happens, it would be to the elected alassane ouattara's government which is currently operating out of the tent protected by u.n. peac

that's what we are waiting for. >> mediators have said that power sharing with alassane ouattara is not an option. preparations to oust incumbents are being made in case negotiations fail. >> ahead of sunday's referendum on a that barriers to pull this off to the for unity but said he would back an independence vote. the referendum was guaranteed in a 2005 peace deal that ended sudan's north-south civil war. at least 2000 people died in that conflict. if the south of votes for independence, the two sides of the country will have to decide issue related to oil revenues and the exact route of the border between them. a gunman has assassinated the gunman -- the mayor of the punjab state. salman taseer was shot and killed near his home. it was the most high-profile political killings in pakistan's nazir bhutto was assassinated three yearsgo. hewas e of the moderate voices in the pakistan people's party. he has spoken out against softening blasphemy laws. that has angered islamists. >> salman taseer's opposition to blasphemy laws has cost him his life. he was apparently shot dead by one of h

from may sweep by security forces from a pro-alassane ouattara neighborhood. negotiators are trying to break the deadlock. >> we worked late into the night. a breakthrough that was needed did not materialize. >> the longer the crisis materializes, the greater the pressure on the un unless mr. gbagbo steps down. >> encouraging news on the condition of gabrielle giffords. less than two weeks where she was shot during a rampage which killed six others, barring any medical issues, she will be moved to a medical hospital in houston which is where her husband works. just 99 days to go before the most anticipated wedding in years. the excitement is spreading beyond london. prince william and kate middleton will be married on april 29. america's love affair with british royalty was started by princess diana. she was more at home in the u.s. than in britain in some ways. an exhibition dedicated to the princess has opened in the midwest. >> of all the places in all the world, grand rapids in michigan is right now a place of pilgrimage for fans of the late princess of wa

we spoke to alassane ouattara. >> an empty road as we head toward the besieged hotel. we're hoping to reach the man the world says is the rightful president of ivory coast. first, we have to get through the siege. we are stopped by forces loyal to laurent gbagbo, the man refusing to give up the presidency. we are ordered out and they say, we will finish you off, you will never leave here. that was a very unpleasant scene. we were taken from the car and threatened with execution by laurent gbagbo's troops. they let us through and we made it through to the besieged hotel. a surreal calm in the center of the storm. we're not allowed to film the troops guarding the hotel. in the lobby, a cabinet and president in waiting. tired of negotiations, the one the standoff resolved by outside military intervention. -- they want the standoff resolved by outside military intervention. >> there are five years of negotiations. he wants to get time to bring in arms, munitions, and mercenaries. he wants to continue to stay in office. >> this will end in war. >> it will not. it does not m

gbagbo refuse to step down despite alassane ouattara gaining international recognition as november's presidential election winner. >> the reassurance of body armor. a daily precaution for u.n. troops on patrol in ivory coast. more than 200 lives here have been lost since the election. the mission is to soothe tensions. let us solve our problems ourselves, she says. such defiance is becoming a theme of supporters of laurent gbagbo, a man the international community says lost the election. france and the united nations tried to impose on us a president we did not elect. they also wanted to intimidate us, ordering laurent gbagbo to step down. this is the land of the u.n. says should be in the presidential palace. alassane ouattara is widely seen as having won the election, but for now, he is holed up in a hotel, reliant on u.n. protection. diplomatic efforts to help him by neighboring countries in the west african bloc have so far failed. now, he has suggested a military solution. >> if they do send in the special forces with the objective of removing mr. gbagbo, he will not be removed.

instead, his rival alassane ouattara is now trapped inside this hotel. foreign mediators say a peaceful outcome is still possible, but they insist the loser must quit. they do not want a zimbabwe- style power-sharing deal. laurent gbagbo sat down, but he still has plenty of supporters here. they say they are not prepared to give up without a fight. we've come to one of their strongholds in the city center. behind the defiance like the bitter ethnic rivalries that caused the recent civil war and could trigger another. >> if alassane ouattara moves from that hotel and i did what was in my head, i will kill him. >> such threats stoke the fears of many here. immigrants from liberia are seeking protection inside the united nations. >> we are afraid of being massacred here because of threats to continue to receive at the hands of most of those who pass by. >> her husband is missing. it is hard to see a quick or a painless way out of any of this. andrew harding, bbc news, ivory coast. >> in the united states, it has emerged that about 500 redwing birds have bee

that's what we are waiting for. >> mediators have said that power sharing with alassane ouattara is not an option. preparations to oust incumbents are being made in case negotiations fail. >> ahead of sunday's referendum on a that barriers to pull this off to the for unity but said he would back an independence vote. the referendum was guaranteed in a 2005 peace deal that ended sudan's north-south civil war. at least 2000 people died in that conflict. if the south of votes for independence, the two sides of the country will have to decide issue related to oil revenues and the exact route of the border between them. a gunman has assassinated the gunman -- the mayor of the punjab state. salman taseer was shot and killed near his home. it was the most high-profile political killings in pakistan's benazir bhutto was assassinated three years ago. he was one of the moderate voices in the pakistan people's party. he has spoken out against softening blasphemy laws. that has angered islamists. >> salman taseer's opposition to blasphemy laws has cost him his life. he was apparently shot dead by o

alassane ouattara says they must take all necessary measures, including force. william daley has been confirmed as the new white house chief of staff. the former commerce secretary is also a banker and lawyer and a big dynasty from chicago. the u.s. treasury secretary has asked congress to raise the legal limit on how much the american government can borrow. it is left up to the senate, and the country could reach its current debt limit by the end of march. last year, more than 14,000 billion dollars in borrowing. the carmaker renault says its race to develop an electric car has been hit by industrial espionage. it has suspended three senior managers, accusing them of passing a closely guarded secrets to an unnamed rival. renault and its japanese partner have invested heavily in electric cars. the french industry minister is warning his country is facing what he calls the economic war. from paris, christian fraser. >> the renault zoe on display at the pair's car show this summer is designed to give the world's small car sector a sizable electric shock. it is a d

he said it is needed to protect the headquarters of the internationally recognized winner, alassane ouattara, who remains in a hotel. he is cut off by military checkpoints. our correspondent reports. >> an empty road as we head toward the besieged hotel. we're hoping to reach the men the world says is the rightful president of ivory coast. we need to get through the siege. we are stopped by forces loyal to laurent gbagbo, the man reluctant to give up the presidency. we are ordered out and one says, we will finish you, you'll never leave here. that was a very unpleasant scene. we were threatened with execution by laurent gbagbo's troops. we have made it through by road to the besieged hotel. a surreal calm in the center of the storm. we were not allowed to film the troops guarding the hotel. in the lobby, the cabinet and president in waiting. they want this standoff resolved by outside military intervention. >> laurent gbagbo is not sincere, he has never been. he has never been up to his commitments. he wants to bring in arms, munitions, and mercenaries because he wants to continuously stay i

with no sign of an end to the power struggle in the west african country, alassane ouattara has issued a demand for all exports of cocoa and coffee to stop for a month, to cut off funds for his rival, laurent gbagbo. worried traders rushed to buy. prices have been volatile ever since last november's election. a ton of cocoa bought for delivery two months ahead was around $2,800. the cost is now above $3,300, a rise of 23%. what is not clear is how effective any export ban would be. cocoa could be smuggled over the border to fellow cocoa-producing countries like madonna before continuing its journey overseas. many observers believe higher prices in the short term are likely. >> the key point to make is that the ivory coast is the world's largest producer of cocoa beans. if there was to be a disruption to exports, and not just because of the ban but because of political issues as well, we could see substantially higher prices. >> the impact of a ban could depend more on the reaction outside ivory coast than in it. foreign chocolate producers may come under pressure from their own governm

headquarters of the internationally recognized winner of the country's presidential election, alassane ouattara, who remains in a hotel. his rival, laurent gbagbo, is refusing to step down. andrew harding reports. >> an empty road as we head towards the besieged hotel. we're hoping to reach the man the world says is the rightful president of ivory coast. we have to get through that stage. where stopped by forces loyal to laurent gbagbo, the man refusing to give up the presidency. we are ordered out and they say, we will finish you. you'll never leave. that was an unpleasant scene. we were taken from the car and threatened with execution by laurent gbagbo's troops. we have made it by road to the besieged hotel. acer real calm -- a surreal calm in the middle of the storm. we're not allowed to film the troops guarding the hotel. a lobby and a cabinet and president in waiting. they want this standoff resolved. >> i think laurent gbagbo has never been -- he has never been up to his commitments. he wants to gain time to bring in arms, munitions, and mercenaries. he wants to continue to stay in office

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