Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo was arrested today after French armoured vehicles closed in on the compound where he has been holed up in a bunker.
A column of more than 30 French armoured vehicles moved in on Mr Gbagbo's residence in central Abidjan after helicopter gunships attacked the compound overnight.
"Yes, he has been arrested," Affoussy Bamba, a spokeswoman for presidential rival Alassane Ouattara, told Reuters.
Mr Gbagbo later called for an end to fighting, hours after being placed under detention by forces loyal to his presidential rival.
He made a brief appearance on the TCI television channel of his rival Alassane Ouattara. "I am calling for the fighting to stop," he said.
Earlier a Gbagbo adviser in Paris had told Reuters that French special forces had detained Mr Gbagbo after breaking into the compound with tanks. "Gbagbo has been arrested by French special forces in his residence and has been handed over to the rebel leaders," he said.
Mr Gbagbo's spokesman in Ivory Coast said: "President Laurent Gbagbo came out of his bunker and surrendered to the French without opposing resistance."
Mr Gbagbo was later taken to the Hotel Golf in Abidjan, where Mr Ouattara has had his headquarters since the presidential election last November.
Mr Gbagbo had refused to step down after Mr Ouattara won the election, according to results certified by the United Nations, reigniting a civil war that has claimed more than 1,000 lives and uprooted a million people.
Residents reported heavy fighting this morning between forces loyal to Mr Ouattara and those backing his rival around Abidjan's Cocody and Plateau districts, still controlled by forces loyal to Mr Gbagbo.
The French armoured vehicles, each carrying between four to eight men, left their base in the south and headed towards downtown Abidjan early today.
France, the former colonial power in Ivory Coast with more than 1,600 troops in the country, took a lead role in efforts to persuade Mr Gbagbo to relinquish power, infuriating his supporters who accuse Paris of neo-colonialism.
Some Gbagbo supporters around Cocody district, where his residence is located, tried to halt the French armoured vehicles, kneeling in front of them praying, but were quickly dispersed when another round of firing began.
Helicopter attacks a week ago on Mr Gbagbo's heavy weapons by the United Nations and France appeared to bring his forces to the point of surrender, but they used a lull in fighting to regroup before taking more ground in Abidjan.
Mr Ouattara's forces swept from the north to coastal Abidjan almost unopposed more than a week ago in a drive to install Ouattara as the top cocoa producer's leader.
Mr Gbagbo's defeat had appeared imminent last week and talks took place between the two sides. But Mr Gbagbo's soldiers dug in, holding on to swathes of the city and frustrating hopes of a swift end to the conflict.
Even now, Mr Ouattara's ability to unify the West African country may be undermined by reports of atrocities against civilians since his forces charged into Abidjan. Mr Ouattara's camp has denied involvement.
Human Rights Watch said on Saturday that forces loyal to Mr Ouattara had killed hundreds of civilians, raped over 20 women and girls perceived as belonging Gbagbo camp and burned at least 10 villages in western Ivory Coast.
Those loyal to Mr Gbagbo, in turn, killed more than 100 alleged supporters of Mr Ouattara in March, it is claimed.
Reuters