Delegates report ‘huge number of bodies’ from week of tribal clashes as fighting continues over disputed presidential election Rival forces in Ivory Coast are continuing their battle for power as it emerged that more than 800 people were killed this week in inter-ethnic violence in the town of Duekoue. Soldiers backing the country’s UN-recognised president, Alassane Ouattara, clashed with forces loyal to the voted-out president, Laurent Gbagbo, in the country’s main city and former capital, Abidjan. The International Committee of the Red Cross has said at least 800 people were killed in intercommunal violence in Duekoue believed to have taken place on Tuesday, the day after the town in the west of Ivory Coast was taken by the pro-Ouatarra fighters. It is not clear what prompted the killings and whether Ouattara’s forces were involved but they have blamed any killings on the retreating Gbagbo fighters. Red Cross spokeswoman Dorothea Krimitsas said delegates from the Ivorian Red Cross had visited Duekoue on Thursday and Friday to gather evidence and saw a “huge number of bodies.” “We have information that at least 800 persons were killed on 29 March in Duekoue in intercommunal violence,” Krimitsas told Reuters. “Our colleagues saw hundreds of bodies. We strongly suspect that was the result of intercommunal violence. Since Monday or so tens of thousands of people have fled the area. This is not the first time there has been intercommunal violence in Duekoue.” The head of the ICRC delegation in the country, Dominique Liengme, said in a statement: “This incident is particularly shocking in its size and brutality. “The ICRC condemns direct attacks on civilians and reminds the parties to the conflict to make sure that people in the territory under their control must be protected under all circumstances.” The ICRC said tens of thousands of women, men and children had fled fighting in Duekoue since Monday. Gunfire and the sound of heavy weapons fire rang out across Abidjan as the country’s former rebels pressed an offensive to oust Gbagbo, who is refusing to leave office. Pro-Ouatarra fighters met with resistance from Gbagbo fighters around strategic locations like the presidential palace, the state broadcaster RTI and military bases. Residents said they heard loud explosions near the Agban base, the city’s largest, in the Adjame neighbourhood near Cocody where Gbagbo has his official residence. “Mortar fire has been heard since late last night around the gendarmerie. It is very loud and we’re taking shelter in our homes,” said local resident Jules Konin. “The gendarmes from the camp are fighting the insurgents,” said another resident, Adi Saba. Ouattara was internationally recognised as president last year after the electoral commission declared him the winner of a November run-off vote. But Gbagbo also claimed victory. Sanctions have failed to dislodge Gbagbo. The four-month standoff since the election has killed nearly 500 people, according to UN figures, although the real toll is probably far higher. Around 1 million people have fled Abidjan alone and 122,000 more have crossed into Liberia, according to the UN. Ivory Coast Laurent Gbagbo David Batty guardian.co.uk
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• Turn on our auto-refresh tool or hammer F5 for updates • Email rob.smyth@guardian.co.uk with your thoughts • Discuss the game on our Cricket World Cup blog Team news Sri Lanka have made four changes, including the omission of Ajantha Mendis. There was a hint that might happen, because India play him pretty well, but that is still a major shock. They have also completely changed the balance of their side, with five bowlers rather than four, and two spinners rather than three. Chamara Kapugedera replaces the out-of-form Chamara Silva at No5, Thisara Perera is in for Angelo Mathews, Nuwan Kulasekera is in for Rangana Herath, and the offspinner Suraj Randiv – who only arrived a couple of days ago as a replacement – is in for Mendis. India make just one change, with Sreesanth replacing the injured Ashish Nehra. That’s a bit of a surprise, in that the pitch is expected to turn, but there should also be an unusual a India Sehwag, Tendulkar, Gambhir, Kohli, Yuvraj, Dhoni (c/wk), Raina, Harbhajan, Zaheer Khan, Patel, Sreesanth. Sri Lanka Tharanga, Dilshan, Sangakkara, Jayawardene, Samaraweera, Kapugedera, Perera, Kulasekera, Malinga, Randiv, Muralitharan. It’s time for the toss Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kumar Sangakkara, two devilishly cool characters who are textbook examples of modern masculinity, both look pretty relaxed. They even manage to stay completely calm when the toss goes completely wrong. The coin landed as heads, but because of the noise nobody heard Kumar Sangakkara’s call and the match referee Jeff Crowe flicked the coin again. Sangakkara got it right second time, however. Sri Lanka have won the toss and will bat first . This is the end, rubber-wristed friend Today is the final day of Muttiah Muralitharan’s astonishing career, the last we’ll see of those wild eyes, that child-like smile, and that superhuman wrist. So much has been written about him, and Mike Selvey’s piece yesterday was a cracker , and there is very little to add. As well as being one of the greatest players of all time, he has been one of the nicest men ever to play the game. The dignity he has shown in the face of 15 years of whispers and moans has been truly staggering and would be beyond at least 99.94 per cent of the population, while his simple, nerdish love of cricket remains totally infectious. The phrase is used a lot, but with Murali it is fair to say that we will never see the like again. Preamble Good morning. So, the World Cup final. After 43 days, 20,781 runs, 721 wickets, one tie, umpteen near coronaries, an innings for the ages from Ireland’s purple-haired warrior and enough man love to make world peace a tantalising possibility if only the entire globe could embrace cricket, we’ve reached the end. This might be the first World Cup final in any sport to come after the Lord Mayor’s Show, but what a prospect it is. You could not ask for a more perfect final than this. India and Sri Lanka are the two best teams and the two co-hosts; they are so evenly matched that they even have the same strengths and weakness; and they have an all-time-great sniffing the mother of all fairytales: a 100th hundred for Sachin Tendulkar, or a matchwinning performance from Muttiah Muralitharan in his final match. Murali bowling to Sachin in a Super Over? Well, Dame Fortune, if you insist… Murali is fit to play – well, he’ll play – but there is no news on how Sri Lanka will replace Angelo Mathews, who is a deceptively big loss. They have had a pretty easy route to the final, whereas India have already won two finals just to reach the final. Which is better? That bit of history will be written by the victors. Cricket World Cup 2011 India cricket team Sri Lanka cricket team Cricket Over by over reports Rob Smyth guardian.co.uk
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