End Is Near for Gbagbo

It's been four months of sanctions, financial collapse, and civil war, but it looks like the reign of Ivory Coast's Laurent Gbagbo is about to end. Troops loyal to his opponent, Alassane Ouattara, the man recognized by the U.N. and the African Union to have defeated Gbagbo in the election, are closing in on Gbagbo's residence. The head of the army resigned and fled to the South African Embassy with his family, and Gbagbo's security forces, who have terrorized civilians in Ouattara-supporting neighborhoods for months, have mostly given up without a fight, leaving the road open for Ouattara's advance to Abidgan. It seems that only Gbagbo's elite presidential guard is holding firm, however, trying to defend Gbagbo's fortified compound.