Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption Rebellious soldiers took up positions near the military's headquarters in Abidjan on Friday

Angry soldiers have blocked off access to Bouaké, the second largest city in the Ivory Coast, as a revolt over a pay dispute continues.

One of the uprising's leaders said the soldiers were "ready to fight" if attacked.

Sergeant Seydou Koné said they did not want to negotiate with anyone, according to Reuters news agency.

The unrest began after a spokesman for the soldiers announced on Thursday that they had dropped their pay demands.

In January, they forced the government into paying them about $8,000 (£6,200) each in bonuses to end a rebellion. They were due to receive a further payment this month and about 8,000 mutineers are unhappy that they were not consulted ahead of Thursday's televised announcement.

Three former rebels from the country's civil war era were wounded on Saturday after the mutinous soldiers opened fire in Bouaké to stop them staging their own protest, Sergeant Koné said.

There have also been reports of injuries after shooting in the northern city of Korhogo.

The military chief of staff, General Sékou Touré, had threatened "severe disciplinary sanctions" on Friday if the uprising did not end. Shops are closed and soldiers are patrolling and firing in the air in Bouaké, residents said.

The mutineers have also taken control of the city of Odienne, in the north, reports say.

On Friday, shots were fired in the air at military bases in Abidjan, Bondoukou in the east, Bouaké in the centre, and Korhogo. It is believed the mutineers were firing blanks.

In response, elite Republican Guard troops in Abidjan fired warning shots that pushed the mutineers back inside the military headquarters compound in Abidjan, Reuters reported. The situation in the city on Saturday was said to be calm.

Reacting to the spreading unrest, President Alassane Ouattara held an emergency meeting of the country's security council.

The mutiny has raised fears of a resurgence of the violence seen during Ivory Coast's 10-year civil war, which ended in 2011.

Many of the mutineers in January were thought to be former rebels who joined the army after the conflict.</s>ABIDJAN, May 14 (Reuters) - Mutinous soldiers in Ivory Coast opened up access to the West African nation's second-biggest city, Bouake, a leader of the uprising said on Sunday, as public opposition to the three-day nationwide revolt over bonus payments gained momentum.

"We have decided to open the corridors to allow the population to do their work. We have nothing against the population," Sergeant Seydou Kone told Reuters.

Witnesses and a local lawmaker confirmed that traffic was circulating in an out of the city, which sits on the main road axis between Abidjan, the commercial capital - one of the region's largest ports - and landlocked neighbours Mali and Burkina Faso.

Soldiers searched vehicles and checked the identity documents of bus passengers.

However, in the city centre, they fired shots in the air to disperse residents who were attempting to organise a march against the mutiny, which began on Friday and spread rapidly to cities and towns across Ivory Coast, the world's top cocoa grower.

"The population rose up, but the mutineers quickly dispersed the march with shots," said Bouake resident Simon Guede. "Everything is closed. No one is in the streets except the soldiers and a few protesters." (Reporting by Joe Bavier and Ange Aboa; Editing by Andrew Bolton)</s>Defiant soldiers blocked access to Ivory Coast’s second-largest city on Saturday after firing guns into the air throughout the night, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.

Rebellious soldiers had already taken to the streets Friday in Bouake, the economic capital of Abidjan and another city demanding pay increases.

The city of Bouake was the epicentre of a mutiny in January by former rebel soldiers who had been integrated into the army, which triggered months of unrest.

“We want our money,” a soldier wearing a facemask said Saturday, refusing to give his name.

The soldiers forced the police who normally control the four main access points to Bouake to flee, before taking up positions and blocking all traffic into the city.

They were also taking up positions elsewhere in the city, and banks and stores remained closed Saturday morning.

The situation remained calm however in Abidjan on Saturday, a day after the rebelling soldiers had surrounded the military’s headquarters in the city.

Late Friday, General Sekou Toure, chief of staff of Ivory Coast’s armed forces, warned of “severe disciplinary sanctions” for the soldiers.

The January mutiny saw the government promise to pay the soldiers 12 million CFA francs (18,000 euros) each, with an initial payment of five million francs that month.

The remainder was to be paid this month, according to rebel sources.

The world’s top cocoa provider, Ivory Coast has an army numbering around 22,000 soldiers, among them many former rebels who were integrated into the armed forces after years of conflict.

Last year, the government unveiled an ambitious plan to modernise the military, part of which would involve the departure of several thousand men, particularly ex-rebels, who will not be replaced.

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>ABIDJAN, May 13 (Reuters) - Disgruntled soldiers sealed off access to Ivory Coast's second largest city, Bouake, on Saturday as protests over a pay dispute stretched into a second day despite the government's warnings of harsh punishments, soldiers and residents said.

"We do not want to negotiate with anyone," said Sergeant Seydou Kone, one of the leaders of the uprising. "We're also ready to fight if we are attacked. We have nothing to lose."</s>Disgruntled Soldiers Seal Off Access to Ivory Coast’s Second Largest City, Bouake

Disgruntled soldiers sealed off access to Ivory Coast’s second largest city, Bouake, Saturday, soldiers and residents said, as protests over a pay dispute stretched into a second day despite government warnings of harsh punishments.

The revolt began in Bouake early Friday before spreading quickly, following a pattern similar to a mutiny in January by the same group that paralyzed parts of the West African state and marred its image as a post-war success story.

Mutinying soldiers in Bouake went a step further Saturday, blocking roads leading north and south out of the city.

“We do not want to negotiate with anyone,” said Sergeant Seydou Kone, one of the leaders of the uprising. “We’re also ready to fight if we are attacked. We have nothing to lose.”

Bouake residents said shops remained closed as soldiers, many of them wearing balaclavas, fired their weapons in the air and patrolled the streets in stolen cars.

Kone said the mutineers were also active in the commercial capital Abidjan and the towns of Korhogo, Daloa, Man and Bondoukou. A Korhogo resident confirmed gunfire there and said access to the main military camp had been blocked.

In a statement broadcast on state-owned television late Friday, Military Chief of Staff General Sekou Toure threatened the soldiers with “severe disciplinary sanctions” if they did not end the revolt.

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>ABIDJAN, May 12 (Reuters) - Gunfire erupted on Friday in several locations in Ivory Coast, including the military headquarters in the commercial capital Abidjan, as anger spread following a decision by some leaders of a group of mutineers to drop demands for bonuses.

The protests by soldiers, most of them ex-rebel fighters who helped bring President Alassane Ouattara to power, began in the second largest city, Bouake, overnight before spreading to Abidjan and the northern town of Odienne.

The unrest came a day after a spokesman for thousands of soldiers who participated in a January mutiny, which paralysed parts of the world's top cocoa grower, said the group would forego demands for more money.

"That's not what they were meant to say," said one of the mutiny leaders in Bouake, who asked not to be named, explaining the reaction of the soldiers to the announcement.

"Soldiers are at the entrances to the city. We won't close it off for the moment ... Other soldiers are also deployed inside the city."

He said if they received no response from the authorities, they would seal off access to Bouake in the evening.

"We're still hearing gunfire. They are firing in the air. To be safe we are starting to send the children home from school," said Sarah Toure, a teacher in Bouake.

Mirroring the rapid spread of the January mutinies, gunfire also was heard at Ivory Coast's military headquarters as well its largest military base in Abidjan, military and diplomatic sources said. Soldiers also blocked access to the northern city of Odienne, a resident said.

Ivory Coast has emerged from a 2002-2011 conflict as one of the world's fastest-growing economies. But deep divisions persist, particularly in a military assembled from ex-rebel and loyalist fighters, raising the spectre of lingering instability.

That pledge to drop further demands for bonus payments would ease pressure on government finances, which have been squeezed by a sharp decline in world cocoa prices and earlier payments to the mutinous soldiers. (Writing by Joe Bavier Matthew Mpoke Bigg; Editing by Larry King and Richard Lough)</s>Mutinous soldiers in Ivory Coast shot three people on Saturday and cut off access to the second-largest city, Bouake, as a revolt escalated over demands for bonus payments.

The revolt began in Bouake early on Friday before spreading quickly, following a similar pattern to a mutiny by the same group in January that paralysed parts of Ivory Coast and marred its image as a post-war success story.

Mutineers seized control of the national military headquarters and defence ministry in the centre of the commercial capital, Abidjan, on Friday.

They stepped up the pressure on Saturday, blocking roads out of Bouake, the epicentre of January’s uprising, and protesting around the country, including the northern city of Korhogo, where two men on a motorcycle were shot in the legs as they tried to get through a roadblock manned by the mutineers.

“They shot at them. They were wounded and transported to the hospital,” said witness Amadou Yeo.

In Bouake, soldiers fired on a group of demobilised former rebels, seriously wounding one of them, according to their spokesman and a local politician.

Sgt Seydou Kone, a spokesman for the mutineers, said the ex-fighters, who went through a disarmament programme following the country’s 2011 civil war, were planning their own protest, as they did early this week, and his men had opened fire to stop them.

“We do not want to negotiate with anyone,” said Sgt Kone by phone from Bouake, in the centre of the country. “We’re also ready to fight if we are attacked. We have nothing to lose.”

In a statement on state television late on Friday, Gen Sekou Toure, the army’s chief of staff, threatened the soldiers with severe sanctions if they did not end the revolt.

Ivory Coast’s defence minister and government spokesman could not be reached for comment on Saturday.

The soldiers were promised bonus payments by the government after the January mutiny but it has struggled to disburse the money following a budget crunch caused by the collapse in the price of cocoa, Ivory Coast’s main export.

Ivory Coast has emerged as one of the world’s fastest growing economies following a decade-long political crisis ended by a 2011 civil war. But deep divisions persist, particularly in a military assembled from former rebel and loyalist combatants.

The government has already paid 8,400 soldiers - most of them former rebels who helped bring President Alassane Ouattara to power - bonuses of 5 million CFA francs ($8,400) each as part of a deal to end the January revolt.

On Thursday, following a meeting with authorities in Abidjan, a spokesman for the group said they would forego demands for remaining bonuses of 7 million francs.

But that decision was rejected by some of the soldiers.

“We want our 7 million and that’s it,” said Sgt Kone.

Bouake residents said shops were closed as soldiers fired weapons in the air and patrolled the streets in cars.

Mutineers also took control of the northern city of Odienne and there was sporadic gunfire in Daloa, the main cocoa-growing hub in southwestern Ivory Coast, which is the world’s top producer of the chocolate ingredient.

Hundreds of people, meanwhile, gathered for a rally against the revolt close to the military headquarters in Abidjan, which was still being held by the mutineers.</s>Mutinous soldiers allow access to Ivory Coast city

 

 A partisan of the ruling party RDR (Rally of the republicans) holds a placard during a rally against the mutiny close to the military headquarters in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, May 13, 2017. The placard reads, ''Mutinies: it's enough''. REUTERS/Luc Gnago …</s>Disgruntled troops cut off Bouake after staging fresh revolt over a pay dispute with the government.

Mutinying soldiers sealed off access to Ivory Coast's second largest city of Bouake on Saturday, soldiers and residents said, as protests over a pay dispute with the government continued despite warnings of harsh punishments.

The unrest began in Bouake on Thursday before quickly spreading, following a pattern similar to a mutiny in January by the same group that paralysed parts of the West African country.

Mutinying soldiers, majority of whom are ex-rebel fighters who helped bring President Alassane Ouattara to power, went a step further on Saturday, blocking roads leading north and south out of Bouake.

"We do not want to negotiate with anyone," Sergeant Seydou Kone, one of the leaders of the uprising, said..

"We're also ready to fight if we are attacked. We have nothing to lose," he added.

The unrest broke out hours after national television broadcast a ceremony in which a spokesman for 8,400 mutinous soldiers apologised to Ouattara for a rebellion in January, and dropped demands for extra pay.

By Friday morning, disgruntled soldiers, firing guns in the air, had surrounded the military headquarters in Abidjan. Later in the day, armed soldiers sealed off all roads leading into Odienne.

READ MORE: Ivory Coast's former first lady cleared of war crimes

Bouake residents said shops remained closed on Saturday as soldiers, many of them wearing balaclavas, fired their weapons in the air and patrolled the streets in stolen cars.

Kone said the mutineers were also active in the commercial capital Abidjan and the towns of Korhogo, Daloa, Man and Bondoukou. A Korhogo resident confirmed gunfire there and said access to the main military camp had been blocked.

In a statement broadcast on state television late on Friday, Military Chief of Staff General Sekou Toure threatened the soldiers with "severe disciplinary sanctions" if they did not end the revolt.

The government held an emergency meeting on Friday and said it will not negotiate with the mutinying troops.

Al Jazeera’s Nicolas Haque, reporting from Ouagadougou in neighbouring Burkina Faso, said Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara wants to show he is in control of the armed forces.

"President Ouattara wants to stand firm. He wants to show to these mutineers, to the soldiers, to people in the Ivory Coast and to foreign investors that he’s in charge of the armed forces," Haque said.

He added that there are only two options for the rebellious troops: "either return to the barracks or face action from the government".

The latest revolt follows that of a similar mutiny in January that erupted in Bouake and spread to nine other cities.

The government then agreed to a deal that provided amnesty for the mutineers and agreed to pay each soldier 12m CFA francs ($19,950). The soldiers received 5m francs ($8,370) in January, and were due to get the rest of the sum this month.

But they said the government asked for a delay in payment to ease financial pressure on the treasury, citing a collapse in cocoa revenues.

Ivory Coast is the largest exporter of cocoa in the world and has had to shrink its national budget due to falling prices.

The Ivory Coast was going through a "very, very difficult time", the president said, after a fall in the price of cocoa.

The Ivorian army, which consists of about 22,000 soldiers, includes many former rebels who were integrated into the armed forces after years of conflict.

Ivory Coast was plunged into civil war in 2002 following a failed attempt to oust then-president Laurent Gbagbo.

The revolt sliced the former French colony into the rebel-held north and the government-controlled south and triggered years of unrest.

Gbago was forcibly removed from office in 2011 after he refused to accept Ouattara's internationally recognised victory in a presidential election the year before. The rebels were then integrated into the army in a peace deal.

Last year, Ivory Coast launched an ambitious plan for the modernisation of the military, including an overhaul of personnel as well as purchases of material worth $1.3bn.

Part of the plan provides for the departure of several thousand men, particularly ex-rebels, who will not be replaced.</s>Mutinous soldiers in Ivory Coast shot two people and cut off access to the second largest city, Bouake, on Saturday, as a nationwide revolt over demands for bonus payments extended into a second day despite government warnings of harsh punishment. The revolt began in Bouake early on Friday before spreading quickly, following a similar pattern to a mutiny by the same group in January that paralysed parts of Ivory Coast and marred its image as a post-war success story. Mutineers seized control of the national military headquarters and defence ministry in the centre of the commercial capital Abidjan on Friday.

They stepped up the pressure on Saturday, blocking roads out of Bouake, the epicentre of January’s uprising, and protesting in several other locations, including the northern city of Korhogo, where two men on a motorcycle were shot as they tried to force their way through a roadblock manned by the mutineers.

“They shot at them. They were wounded and transported to the hospital,” said witness Amadou Yeo, adding that the two men had been shot in the legs.

Also in Korhogo, soldiers fired into air to disperse a group of residents that had gathered to protest against the uprising, sending people fleeing home. Shops were shuttered and the streets were largely empty.

“We do not want to negotiate with anyone,” said Sergeant Seydou Kone, one of the leaders of the uprising, speaking by phone from Bouake. “We’re also ready to fight if we are attacked. We have nothing to lose.”

In a statement on state television late on Friday, Military Chief of Staff General Sekou Toure threatened the soldiers with severe disciplinary sanctions if they did not end the revolt.

Ivory Coast’s defence minister and government spokesman were not reachable for comment on Saturday.

The soldiers were promised bonus payments by the government after the January mutiny but it has struggled to disburse the money following a budget crunch caused by the collapse in the price of cocoa, Ivory Coast’s main export.

Ivory Coast has emerged as one of the world’s fastest growing economies following a decade-long political crisis ended by a 2011 civil war. But deep divisions persist, particularly in a military assembled from former rebel and loyalist combatants.

The government has already paid 8,400 soldiers – most of them former rebels who helped bring President Alassane Ouattara to power – bonuses of 5 million CFA francs ($8,371) each as part of a deal to end the January mutiny.

On Thursday, following a meeting with authorities in Abidjan, a spokesman for the group said they would forego demands for remaining bonuses of 7 million francs.

But that decision was rejected by some of the soldiers.

“We want our 7 million and that’s it,” said Kone.

Bouake residents said shops remained closed as soldiers fired weapons in the air and patrolled the streets in cars.

Mutineers also took control of the northern city of Odienne and there was sporadic gunfire in Daloa, the main cocoa growing hub in southwestern Ivory Coast, which is the world’s top producer of the chocolate ingredient.

Kone said the mutineers were also active in Man near the western border with Liberia, and Bondoukou in the east.

“Perhaps the government is tired of this, but they must sit down and talk,” said retired gendarme Valentin Sokoure, speaking near the military headquarters in Abidjan where the barricades had been removed Saturday morning. “I just want the government to negotiate with the mutineers.”

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Ivorian soldiers block access to Bouaké, the second-largest city in Ivory Coast amid a dispute over pay. The town of Odienné is also reported to be under mutineer control.