BANJUL, Gambia -- Gambia's defeated leader Yahya Jammeh will step down and leave the country, Mauritania's president said early Saturday, while Gambia's new president declared that "the rule of fear" in the tiny West African nation had ended.

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz spoke with reporters at the airport shortly before boarding his flight home, calling the news a victory for Gambia. He had been part of last-ditch talks to try to persuade Jammeh to cede power to Adama Barrow, who won election last month, while a regional force was poised to move in if negotiations failed.

A State House official close to the situation said Jammeh would leave within three days, possibly on Saturday with Guinean President Alpha Conde, who was spending the night in Gambia's capital, Banjul. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not permitted to speak about the situation to press.

Jammeh has refused to accept his loss to Barrow, who was inaugurated Thursday at Gambia's embassy in neighbouring Senegal because of concerns for his safety. It was not clear when Barrow would return to Gambia.

Jammeh, who first seized power in a 1994 coup, has been holed up in his official residence in Banjul, and was becoming increasingly isolated as his security forces abandoned him and he dissolved his Cabinet.

Defence forces chief Ousmane Badjie told The Associated Press that Gambia's security services now support Barrow and would not oppose the regional force that was ready to move against Jammeh if he refused to step down.

"You cannot push us to war for an issue we can solve politically," Badjie said. "We don't see any reason to fight."

The force, including tanks, rolled into Gambia without facing any resistance, said Marcel Alain de Souza, chairman of the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS. At least 20 military vehicles were seen Friday at the border town of Karang.

The force included troops from Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Togo and Mali, and they moved in after Barrow's inauguration and a unanimous vote by the U.N. Security Council to support the regional efforts.

Fearing violence, about 45,000 people have fled Gambia for Senegal, according to the Senegalese government and the U.N. refugee agency.

Jammeh earlier had agreed to step down but demanded amnesty for any crimes he may have committed during his 22 years in power and wanted to stay in Gambia, in his home village of Kanilai, de Souza said Friday.

Those demands were not acceptable to ECOWAS, he added. The Mauritanian and Guinean leaders then held hours of talks with Jammeh to work out a deal.

Some of Gambia's diplomatic missions began switching their allegiance, while some African nations announced they no longer recognized Jammeh.

"We embrace and support the new president Adama Barrow," said Almamy Kassama, an official at the Gambian mission to the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in an email.

In his inaugural speech, Barrow urged Jammeh to step aside and called for Gambia's armed forces to stay in their barracks.

Banjul was peaceful. Senegalese radio station RFM reported 30 Gambian soldiers had crossed into Senegal to fight alongside the regional forces.

"I think the Gambian military would know it's outnumbered," said Maggie Dwyer, an expert on West African armed forces at the University of Edinburgh. "Gambia's military has very little combat experience. This would be a very difficult situation for them."

She estimated it had 2,400 troops at most, plus fewer than 1,000 paramilitary forces.

"My guess is a very small number would actually put their life on the line for Jammeh," though some could stand by him to get the same deal he might receive to avoid prosecution, Dwyer said.

Soldiers at checkpoints in Banjul appeared relaxed, with one telling visitors, "Welcome to the smiling coast."

Late Friday, Barrow addressed members of Gambia's diaspora and urged them to return home and rebuild their lives. "I wish to congratulate all of you and welcome you to the new Gambia," he said.

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Dione reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writers Krista Larson in Dakar, Senegal; Elias Meseret in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; and Cara Anna in Johannesburg contributed.