Brutal excesses occurred in the region, a stronghold of two western-based Ivorian rebel groups which joined the main insurgent movement after it launched a rebellion on September 19, cutting the world's top cocoa grower in half.

Liberian combatants were also active in the area and accused of fighting alongside both government forces and rebels.

The Liberians and both the belligerents were accused of widespread rights abuses including murder, rape and looting.

French military officials told an AFP journalist visiting the region on Tuesday that the "confidence zone" stretching across 200 kilometresmiles) and about 50 kilometres (83 miles) wide was back to normal and "respected 95 percent."

In late May, peacekeepers launched an operation to secure the west.

The "zone of confidence" refers to a plan to secure the border area near Liberia.

Peacekeepers and rebels are tasked with ensuring safety along the northern part of the border, while government troops are responsible for the south.

In the beginning of March, some 60 civilians were butchered in cold blood in Bangolo, a key town in the west. Both the rebels and the government forces denied responsibility.

Following the killings, civilians fled their homes. But people have slowly started coming back.

On Tuesday, Ivorian chief of staff General Mathias Doue, visited the area to reassure the population that their safety was assured "thanks to our brothers" in the French and west African peacekeeping forces.

Former rebel leader Gaspard Deli from the Movement for Justice and Peace (MJP) insurgent group added: "It's the time now to work in the fields. Everyone should return soon."

The securing of the west follows a French-brokered peace plan for Ivory Coast which was signed in January.

Rebels fighting President Laurent Gbagbo have since joined a unity government to end the war.

The accord calls for the regrouping of troops in military camps.

France has nearly 4,000 troops deployed in Ivory Coast, its former colony, and the west African regional grouping ECOWAS has around 1,300 but has pledged to triple that number.

WAR.WIRE