Acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, the Council urged all Ivorian parties to respect the will of the people and the election of Alassane Ouattara as President of Côte d'Ivoire, as recognised by ECOWAS, the African Union and the rest of the international community. It also demanded an immediate end to violence against civilians. Furthermore, the Ivorian parties were urged to pursue the political solution offered by the African Union, and Laurent Gbagbo was criticised for not accepting the solution and urged to step down.[3]