Ivory Coast unrest prompts travel warning

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Washington issued a travel warning for the Ivory Coast amid a tense standoff over the country's second round of presidential elections, the State Department said.

The European Parliament in a statement said an announcement that incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo won a second round of voting was "contrary to the will expressed by the Ivorian people through the ballot box."

Europe in coordination with the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States adopted an "urgent declaration" condemning an Ivorian court's decision to invalidate provisional election results that suggested opposition leader Alassane Ouattara was victorious.

Supporters of Ouattara took to the streets after both candidates claimed to have taken the oath of office. The election was meant to unite a country divided into a pro-government south and a rebel-held north following a 2002 rebellion.

The U.S. State Department announced Monday it issued a travel advisory for the Ivory Coast, warning against unnecessary travel as violence can't be ruled out.

"Security conditions within the country, and particularly in the north and in the west, can deteriorate quickly and without warning," the warning read.

U.N. officials had issued repeated pleas for transparency and asked for calm. Election-related violence claimed at least six lives in the Ivory Coast.