Ex-Ivory Coast president Gbagbo launches new party, vows to stay in politics

Ivory Coast's former president Laurent Gbagbo speaks during the second day of the meeting to launch the formation of a new political party at the Sofitel hotel in Abidjan, Ivory Coast October 17, 2021. Reuters/Luc Gnago

ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo vowed on Sunday to continue in politics "until my death" as he launched a new party following his acquittal by the International Criminal Court and return from a decade abroad.

Gbagbo, president from 2000-2011, returned to Ivory Coast https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/ivory-coasts-former-president-gbagbo-flies-home-after-decade-exile-2021-06-17 in June after being acquitted in 2019 by the Netherlands-based court on war crimes charges for his role in a civil war sparked by his refusal to concede defeat in an election.