Will Gbagbo's arrest end the Ivory Coast crisis?

The former president refused to give up power after losing an election last fall. Now that he's in custody, will his country finally find peace?

It's unclear whether the capture of Laurent Gbagbo, Ivory Coast's former president, will end violent conflict in his sharply-divided country.
(Image credit: Corbis)

Aided by French tanks and helicopters, opposition forces captured the Ivory Coast's besieged former president, Laurent Gbagbo, on Monday, ending five months of fighting that left more than 1,000 Ivorians dead. Gbagbo had refused to surrender power after losing an election to his rival, Alassane Ouattara, in November. Now Ouattarra is personally guaranteeing Gbagbo's safety, saying he'll turn the former leader over to the courts. Ouattara also urged both sides to "abstain from all reprisals and violence." Is the country's bloody crisis over?

The nation is still sharply divided: It is soothing to view this as the triumph of good over evil, says Aaron Goldstein at The American Spectator, but it's not that simple. "Both sides have blood on their hands." And even after Ouattarra takes office, the southern, predominantly Roman Catholic part of Ivory Coast will still be loyal to Gbagbo, while the Muslim north supports Ouattara. Ultimately, the only way to "avert a full scale civil war" might be to split the nation in two.

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