Heavy gunfire heard in Cote d'Ivore's second-largest city

Heavy gunshots from automatic weapons were heard Tuesday night in central Cote d'Ivore city of Bouake, leaving local residents in panic.

The exchange of fire seemed to have concentrated in the vicinity of the 3rd Infantry Battalion, the main military base in the area.

Shops were immediately closed, paralyzing the country's second-largest city.

Armed conflicts between soldiers of different fractions killed one person Friday in the city, according to local media reports.

The reason for the renewed clashes on Tuesday is not immediately known.

Bouake has been the epicenter of last year's months-long army mutinies in the West African nation.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)