Three West African leaders will return to Ivory Coast on Monday for more negotiations to end the impasse over last month's disputed elections. The announcement came a day after they failed to persuade incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo to stand down. They had hoped Mr Gbagbo would agree to cede power to Alassane Ouattara, widely considered to be the true winner. The regional body Ecowas has threatened to use force if he refuses to go.

State-controlled TV has indicated that several million African nationals from other countries living in Ivory Coast might be at risk if threats from African countries of military intervention against Mr Gbagbo continue. The presidents of Benin, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde had travelled to the main city, Abidjan, as representatives of Ecowas. Afterwards the three men went on to Nigeria to brief the chairman of Ecowas, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.

"They are going back on 3 January and when they come back from this second visit, the outcome will determine the next action," Mr Jonathan said after the briefing, "Whenever there is a dispute, whenever there is disagreement, it is dialogue that will solve issues," he was quoted as saying.

Tuesday's visit was being seen as a final chance to urge Mr Gbagbo to peacefully cede to Mr Ouattara - who is currently holed up in a hotel in the city protected by around 800 UN peacekeepers.