Soldiers in Ivory Coast are using live ammunition to break up protests after
military ruler General Robert Guei and his main political opponent Laurent
Gbagbo both declared themselves winner of Sunday's presidential elections.
The military administration announced that General Guei had won the poll and the
electoral commission had been dissolved - the few results that it had announced
put Mr Gbagbo in the lead.
Shortly afterwards Mr Gbagbo declared himself the true winner and called on his
followers to take the streets.
The security forces have been firing into the air and using tear gas and batons
to try to disperse Mr Gbagbo's supporters.
Protesters remove all trace of General Guei in their path
 France - the former colonial power - has warned the military authorities
against ignoring the electorate's wishes.
General Guei came to power in a coup in December last year. He recently promised
to respect the result of the election, which his main opponent - Alassane
Ouattara - was banned from taking part in.
Violence
Gunfire could be heard from several quarters of the commercial capital, Abidjan,
and columns of smoke rose in the air.
A BBC reporter, Charles Bambara, outside state television headquarters said
members of General Guei's military guard used automatic weapons, tear gas and
truncheons in an effort to disperse hundreds of Mr Gbagbo's supporters.
A minister made the announcement but the army calls the shots
 He said soldiers also fired in the air over demonstrators marching towards
General Guei's residence and the atmosphere in the centre of the city was
extremely tense.
Another BBC reporter, Funmi Kuo, described a column of thousands of people
marching from the suburbs down one of Abidjan's main highways towards the
presidential palace.
She said the demonstrators, young and old, had coloured their faces with ashes
or chalk and were tearing down all General Guei's election posters.
Guei promised to honour election results
 Members of the security forces opened fire on the column and there are
unconfirmed reports of injuries amongst the demonstrators.
There are unconfirmed reports of violent demonstrations in towns in central
Ivory Coast, Mr Gbagbo's heartland, and other provincial towns.
standoff
On Tuesday afternoon the interior ministry said General Guei had been elected
after gaining nearly 53% of the vote, beating Mr Gbagbo's 41%, and also
announced the dissolution of the electoral commission.
A court ruling forbade Alassane Ouattara from standing
 General Guei thanked "the great people of Ivory Coast" for voting him in as he
declared his "modest person the first president of the second republic."
Meanwhile Mr Gbagbo declared himself head of state, announced he was dissolving
the military-led transitional government and called on his supporters to take to
the streets.
Earlier his campaign headquarters announced they calculated Mr Gbagbo had won
almost 60% of the vote compared to General Guei's 33%.
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