4 more Gambia ministers resign, flee country as crisis grows

FILE - In this Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016 file photo, Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh shows his inked finger before voting in Banjul, Gambia. Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2017, just two days before he is supposed to cede power after losing elections last month. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File) (The Associated Press)

People stand in the market in Gambia's capital Banjul, Tuesday Jan. 17, 2017. Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh declared a state of emergency just two days before he is supposed to cede power after losing elections last month to President-elect Adama Barrow in the December 2016 election. Barrow is vowing to take power Thursday Jan. 19, despite Jammeh's refusal to leave. (AP Photo) (The Associated Press)

Gambia's longtime leader Yahya Jammeh has lost four more of his ministers after they resigned and fled to neighboring Senegal.

The move comes two days before the man who defeated Jammeh in the December election vows to take power despite Jammeh's refusal to leave.

A political official in Gambia's capital says the ministers of foreign affairs, finance, trade and environment have resigned. The official spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Gambia's information minister earlier went into exile in Senegal.

President-elect Adama Barrow is vowing to go ahead with his inauguration even as Jammeh says the country must wait for Gambia's supreme court to rule, a delay that could take months.

West Africa's regional bloc has a standby force for possible military intervention if Jammeh doesn't step down.