France urges its citizens to leave Ivory Coast

France urged its citizens to leave Ivory Coast on Wednesday after the UN chief warned the former French colony in West Africa faces "a real risk" of return to civil war following the disputed presidential election.

The United Nations and other world leaders recognize Alassane Ouattara as the winner of the November 28 runoff vote. Laurent Gbagbo, the incumbent who refuses to acknowledge defeat and leave the presidency, ordered all UN peacekeepers out of the country over the weekend in an escalation of tensions. (AP)