AFP - Madagascar opposition leader Andry Rajoelina told AFP Saturday he had gone into hiding, two days after security forces attempted to arrest him at his home.
  
"I am now hiding in a safe location where I cannot be attacked," said Rajoelina, who had been leading almost daily rallies against the regime of President Marc Ravalomanana.
  
The 34-year-old opposition leader did not specify whether he was still in the capital Antananarivo or even in the country.
  
According to several sources, security forces entered his residence's compound in a bid to arrest him late Thursday, prompting his supporters to barricade the area.
  
"Until the dust settles, I can no longer physically appear in front of my supporters," said Rajoelina, contacted by phone.
  
Earlier this week, Ravalomanana pledged to intensify the crackdown against Rajoelina's opposition movement and end a political crisis that has crippled the Indian Ocean island since December.
  
Security forces have prevented demonstrators from gathering, leading to clashes in the capital and other towns that have left at least four people dead since Wednesday.
  
The opposition leader describes Ravalomanana as a dictator starving his people and late last year mounted a fierce political challenge against the president, who has been in power since 2002.
  
Rajoelina last week walked out on direct talks with Ravalomanana, accusing his rival of playing down his camp's grievances and pledging to revert to mass street action to unseat the president.
  
But the young DJ-turned-politician said Saturday that he was open to dialogue, advocating a broader forum involving civil society.
  
"The current situation does not allow a real dialogue to flourish," he said. "Other players should be involved for any decision to be made."
  
"At present, neither of the two parties can guarantee Madagascar's future. If the president resigns or if I terminate my movement, the problems will still be there," he explained.
  
The United Nations and African Union have dispatched envoys in a bid to defuse the political crisis and prevent a resumption of violent clashes that have already killed close to 100 since the start of the year.
  
Madagascar is one of the world's poorest countries and Rajoelina's criticism of the regime's economic and social policies have struck a chord with large portions of the population.