ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast // Opposition leaders in Ivory Coast accused President Laurent Gbagbo of trying to steal the country's presidential election, as angry ruling party loyalists prevented the commission's spokesman from announcing the first major batch of results.
The chaotic scene Tuesday night at the commission's headquarters and the failure to release any significant tally two days after polls closed has increased tension and uncertainty in the world's leading cocoa producer, which is struggling to unite after civil war eight years ago split the country in two.
Across Abidjan on Tuesday afternoon, stores closed early and people went home, fearing violence after the proclamation of results was delayed for a third time.
Late Tuesday, electoral commission spokesman Bamba Yacouba prepared to read the first large tranche of results as media gathered at the commission's headquarters. But Damana Picasse, a commission member from Gbagbo's party, yanked papers from Yacouba's hands and ripped them up, yelling: "We did not sign off on these results!"
Yacouba said afterward that the tallies - from three of the nation's 18 regions - had been approved by the commission. He gave no results and security forces later ordered journalists to leave.
Gbagbo's party vowed earlier it would contest some results from three regions of the country's rebel-held north where opposition supporters allegedly tried to steal ballot boxes and take Gbagbo supporters hostage.
Earlier, Mabri Toikeusse, spokesman for opposition leader Alassane Ouattara's coalition, accused Gbagbo loyalists of trying to cheat. Gbagbo "is operating with a rationale of obstructing the electoral commission and confiscating power," Toikeusse said.
The ballot, delayed for years, was supposed to be a key step toward reuniting the West African country eight years after a civil war divided it in two. But it has revealed the fact that profound divisions still exist.
Also Tuesday, the European Union's observer mission said the vote was for the most part free and fair. The mission noted no major problems in 95 percent of the polling stations visited.
"The organization of the election was even better than it was in the first round," said mission head Cristian Preda, noting that violence and intimidation had occurred in a small number of polling stations.
Gbagbo campaign chief Pascal Affi N'Guessan said he had discussed the situation with United Nations mission chief Young-Jin Choi and will request that results from the Savanes, Denguele and Worodougou regions be invalidated "because they didn't respect the norms of transparency."
Gbagbo's opponent Ouattara and the New Forces rebels, which still control the northern half of the country where he has overwhelming support, are "wholly responsible for all the violence that occurred before, during and after the election," said Ferdinand Kouassi, Gbagbo's campaign chief in the north.
Prime Minister Guillaume Soro, the former head of the New Forces, responded by saying that the government's reporting of violence on national TV was "partisan, hasty and incomplete." His spokeswoman, Affoussy Bamba, said there had been no deaths in rebel-held territory, nor any attacks or tampering with ballot boxes.
Another group, which called itself the Coordination of African Electoral Experts, read a report on state television on Tuesday, saying that irregularities in the north were so severe that they invalidate the entire election. The group is not internationally recognized and it's not known where the group is based or who belongs to it.
There were scattered reports of violence over the weekend and on voting day, though no violence was reported Monday or by early Tuesday.
Choi, the U.N. representative, said Monday that three people were killed during balloting Sunday as multiple clashes erupted between partisans in the west of the country. Despite these incidents, he said the vote went well overall.
Most of the weekend clashes between political supporters occurred in small villages where there is no police or military presence and residents set up roadblocks to keep outsiders away. About 1,000 people from several villages fled the violence and sought refuge at the U.N. compound in Sinfra on Sunday, U.N. mission spokesman Hamadoun Toure said. He said the villagers refused to leave because they feared for their lives. Most of them had returned home by Monday afternoon, he said.
Voters chose between Gbagbo, who has been in power since violent street protests swept him into power during the last election in 2000, and Ouattara, the man Gbagbo accuses of being behind the rebellion that sought to topple him in 2002.
Gbagbo received 38 percent in a first round of voting in October, and Ouattara came second with about 32 per cent. Since then, third-place finisher Henri Konan Bedie, who won 25 per cent, has thrown his support behind Ouattara.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
THE BIO
Favourite author - Paulo Coelho
Favourite holiday destination - Cuba
New York Times or Jordan Times? NYT is a school and JT was my practice field
Role model - My Grandfather
Dream interviewee - Che Guevara
Company%20Profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
The%20specs
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
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Under 19 World Cup
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
Three-day coronation
Royal purification
The entire coronation ceremony extends over three days from May 4-6, but Saturday is the one to watch. At the time of 10:09am the royal purification ceremony begins. Wearing a white robe, the king will enter a pavilion at the Grand Palace, where he will be doused in sacred water from five rivers and four ponds in Thailand. In the distant past water was collected from specific rivers in India, reflecting the influential blend of Hindu and Buddhist cosmology on the coronation. Hindu Brahmins and the country's most senior Buddhist monks will be present. Coronation practices can be traced back thousands of years to ancient India.
The crown
Not long after royal purification rites, the king proceeds to the Baisal Daksin Throne Hall where he receives sacred water from eight directions. Symbolically that means he has received legitimacy from all directions of the kingdom. He ascends the Bhadrapitha Throne, where in regal robes he sits under a Nine-Tiered Umbrella of State. Brahmins will hand the monarch the royal regalia, including a wooden sceptre inlaid with gold, a precious stone-encrusted sword believed to have been found in a lake in northern Cambodia, slippers, and a whisk made from yak's hair.
The Great Crown of Victory is the centrepiece. Tiered, gold and weighing 7.3 kilograms, it has a diamond from India at the top. Vajiralongkorn will personally place the crown on his own head and then issues his first royal command.
The audience
On Saturday afternoon, the newly-crowned king is set to grant a "grand audience" to members of the royal family, the privy council, the cabinet and senior officials. Two hours later the king will visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred space in Thailand, which on normal days is thronged with tourists. He then symbolically moves into the Royal Residence.
The procession
The main element of Sunday's ceremonies, streets across Bangkok's historic heart have been blocked off in preparation for this moment. The king will sit on a royal palanquin carried by soldiers dressed in colourful traditional garb. A 21-gun salute will start the procession. Some 200,000 people are expected to line the seven-kilometre route around the city.
Meet the people
On the last day of the ceremony Rama X will appear on the balcony of Suddhaisavarya Prasad Hall in the Grand Palace at 4:30pm "to receive the good wishes of the people". An hour later, diplomats will be given an audience at the Grand Palace. This is the only time during the ceremony that representatives of foreign governments will greet the king.
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Thor: Ragnarok
Dir: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson
Four stars
Company%20Profile
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.