The United States has begun evacuating dependents and non-emergency personnel from its embassy in Abidjan, the capital of Cote d’Ivoire.
U.S. State department spokesperson Philip Crowley told newsmen on Friday that Under Secretary for Management, Pat Kennedy, approved the authorised departure of its citizens.
The North America Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that post-presidential election violence in the West African country has escalated in the past two days.
Ivorien incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo has refused to concede electoral defeat to Alassane Ouattara in spite of pressures from the international community.
On Thursday, the U.S. government said a rocket strike hit the outer perimeter of its embassy in Cote d’Ivoire, with only slight damage and no injuries.
The outbreak of violence same day around the capital killed more than a dozen people.
Crowley said the U.S. was “mindful of the situation in Cote d’Ivoire” and warned that “time is running out” for Mr Gbagbo to step down and allow his elected successor to assume office without further hindrance.
“The United States is prepared to impose targeted sanctions individually and in concert with our partners on Gbagbo, his immediate family, and his inner circle, should he continue to illegitimately cling to power,” he told newsmen.
NAN reports that on Friday, international pressure on Mr Gbagbo was heightened with UN Secretary-General insisting that he must step down.
The UN, which has some 10,000 troops in the country, vowed to defend civilians in the country and protect its operations in the wake of further violence there.
Mr Ban described efforts by Gbagbo and his supporters to cling to power as “a mockery of democracy and the rule of law.”
ECOWAS, AU, the EU and European Commission have all urged Mr Gbagbo to step down and allow the will of the people to prevail.
Both Mr Gbagbo and Mr Ouattara have been sworn in as “presidents” and have gone ahead to name their cabinets.
While Mr Gbagbo rules from the presidential house and controls government buildings, his challenger, backed by the UN forces in the country, is holed up in Golf hotel in Abidjan, from where he “governs” the country.
Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest cocoa exporter, was split by civil war in 2002 into a government-controlled south and a rebel-held north.
The recent presidential election was expected to complete a UN-backed process of reunifying the country and restoring stability.