I.Coast president weighs fourth term run as tensions rise over barred rivals

ABIDJAN - President Alassane Ouattara said on Sunday he would announce in the coming days whether he will run for a fourth term in Ivory Coast's October election, as tensions rise over the exclusion of opposition candidates.

His response was eagerly awaited Sunday by tens of thousands of supporters during a major rally in the west African country's largest city Abidjan, a day after his party nominated him as its presidential candidate.

"I will make a decision in the coming days, after careful consideration in my soul and conscience," Ouattara said inside the Ebimpe stadium that bears his name, cheered by supporters who filled all 60,000 seats and the pitch.

"I feel the strength and sincerity of your call, I cannot ignore these appeals, I have heard them well, and I say with emotion, yes I have heard you," he added.

Ouattara, 83, who has led Ivory Coast since 2011, was officially nominated on Saturday by the ruling Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP), but he has yet to confirm whether he will seek a fourth term.

His nomination comes after weeks of rising political tensions triggered by the courts' barring of several opposition politicians from the October 25 election.

Critics of Ouattara accuse him of tightening his grip on power and strongly oppose the prospect of him running again.

The opposition has accused the authorities of choosing their opponents by legal means, but the government insists the judiciary acts independently.

Past post-vote violence

On Thursday the country's two main opposition parties launched a joint campaign to demand the reinstatement of their barred leaders ahead of the October presidential election.

The alliance brings together the African People's Party of Ivory Coast (PPACI) -- led by former president Laurent Gbagbo -- and the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI), the country's largest opposition force, headed by former international banker Tidjane Thiam.

Gbagbo, his former right-hand man Charles Ble Goude and ex-prime minister Guillaume Soro have been struck from the electoral register due to criminal convictions.

Thiam was also excluded by the judiciary over nationality issues.

After a summit of west African leaders in the Nigerian capital Abuja on Sunday, ECOWAS Commission President Omar Alieu Touray dismissed suggestions that the bloc could intervene in Ivory Coast's electoral process, saying it "does not impose rules" on its member states.

"ECOWAS does not go to a country and impose rules," Touray told reporters after the meeting.

"Anything that is being done in our member states should be done in accordance with national laws and constitutions."

Ivory Coast has a history of election-related violence. A dispute over Ouattara's 2010 victory led to about 3,000 deaths in clashes with supporters of then-rival Laurent Gbagbo.