Meanwhile, the Central Bank of West African States said only his rival Alassane Ouattara's globally recognised government could manage the country's accounts there.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton repeated Thursday a call for Gbagbo to step down.

UN officials in Abidjan said Gbagbo's security forces, shielded by civilian protesters and backed by unidentified masked gunmen, had prevented human rights monitors from probing reports of at least two new mass graves.

They said gangs of gunmen had carried out murderous overnight raids on civilians living in the poorest districts of Abidjan.

AFP