Arrest warrant issued for opposition politician

Ivorian authorities have issued an arrest warrant for opposition politician Alassane Ouattara who is insisting on his right to run against Henri Konan Bedie in presidential elections next year.The warrant issued on 29 November by an examining magistrate has been issued on the grounds of Ouattara's alleged fraud and the use of forged documents to support his eligibility to run in the elections in October 2000. A defiant Ouattara has announced his intention to return home before the end of December and a spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry (le Quai d'Orsay), Anne Gazeau-Secret, has criticised the arrest order.