France, April 24 -- Tensions are rising in Cote d'Ivoire after a court ruled that opposition candidate Tidjane Thiam is not eligible to run in October's presidential election because he lost his Ivorian nationality when he became a French citizen.

An Abidjan court struck Thiam off the electoral list on Tuesday, just days after the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI), the main opposition party in the country, nominated him as its candidate for the 25 October election.

The court said Thiam had been removed because he had lost his Ivorian nationality when acquiring French citizenship in 1987.

The decision cannot be appealed and rules him out of standing for president.

Thiam's lawyers attempted to prove that he was born with dual natio...