Former Ivory Coast president backs Ouattara for 2015 election

DAOUKRO Ivory Coast (Reuters) - Former Ivory Coast President Henri Konan Bedie endorsed President Alassane Ouattara on Wednesday as the sole candidate for the ruling coalition in the 2015 election. Support from Bedie, who heads the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI), means Ouattara now has the backing of two of Ivory Coast's three main political parties. The Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), the third party headed by defeated 2010 presidential candidate Laurent Gbagbo, withdrew from the elections commission at the weekend, raising the prospect of an opposition boycott. "Before the nation assembled here, I am giving clear guidance to support your candidacy at the next presidential election," Bedie said, addressing Ouattara in a speech before political leaders in Bedie's home town of Daoukro. "You have renewed your confidence and support for me at a critical moment in our country's history," said Outtara in a speech at the same event. Gbagbo refused to acknowledge the result of the last presidential vote, leading to a brief civil war that killed about 3,000 people. He now faces charges of crimes against humanity and is awaiting trial before the International Criminal Court in The Hague. (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Emma Farge and Joe Bavier; Editing by Janet Lawrence)