13 tortured to death in I Coast
2005-03-17 13:27
United Nations - The United Nations on Wednesday said that 13 people had died after being tortured by forest guards in the war-torn African nation of Ivory Coast.
It said the guards were carrying out government orders to arrest villagers last month who had been "illegally occupying" Marahoue National Park. Twelve died in prison and a thirteenth in hospital several days later, it said.
The UN mission in Ivory Coast has called for an enquiry into the deaths, a UN statement said.
Ivory Coast, the world's number one producer of cocoa, remains divided into government and rebel areas despite a fragile peace accord that formally ended a rebel uprising against President Laurent Gbagbo.
The rebels announced earlier on Wednesday that South African President Thabo Mbeki is due to return soon to the Ivory Coast, a former French colony, to relaunch mediation efforts between the two sides.
Tensions have been on the rise again since November, when the government violated an 18-month ceasefire with three days of air strikes on rebel-held towns, sparking a wave of violence that culminated with anti-French riots.