Army on rampage in Ivory Coast

DISGRUNTLED SOLDIERS from Ivory Coast's biggest barracks mutinied over pay yesterday, rampaging through the streets of the commercial capital, Abidjanr.

Military sources said the mutiny, one day after a wide-ranging address to the traditionally stable nation by President Henri Konan Bedie, followed an apparent overnight attempt to take the army commander hostage.

There was no government comment and state radio and television went off the air. French military sources said the mutineers had ransacked the television station.

Some military sources spoke of grievances over pay and conditions. The mutiny was led by soldiers who served as peace-keepers in the Central African Republic, which endured three army mutinies in 1996 and 1997. The soldiers were said to be demanding that promised bonuses be paid.