Mali rebels suspend talks with government
Tuareg and Arab rebels, who control northern Mali, announced
Thursday the suspension of negotiations with the Bamako government,
dealing a blow to hopes of a durable peace.
The central issue is the future status of northern
Mali, which the Tuareg movements call ‘Azawad’. The rebels are seeking
autonomy, something the central government is unwilling to discuss.
“Following multiple difficulties in implementing the Ouagadougou
accord, caused notably by the Mali government’s failure to respect its
commitments,” the Tuareg and Arab rebel groups “decided to suspend
participation in the structures created by the said accord,” they said
in a joint statement.
The three movements involved dated the decision from September 18,
the date of the second meeting of the joint committee set under the
ceasefire accord signed in July.
The rebels seized control of northern Mali in the chaos that followed
an army rebellion which overthrew the democratically-elected government
of president Amadou Toumani Toure on March 22, 2012.
The
rebelling army officers were angry at the level of support they had
received to combat the separatist Tuareg rebellion which was already
under way in the north.
The Tuareg seized control of an area larger than France before being
ousted by Al-Qaeda-linked groups that imposed a brutal interpretation of
Islamic law on the local population, carrying out amputations and
executions.
Their actions drew worldwide condemnation and their march south
prompted France to launch a military offensive in January at Mali’s
behest to oust the Islamists.
The Ouagadougou accord,which ended the 18-month politico-military
crisis in Mali, allowed for a presidential election in July which
brought Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to power.
Under the deal the government and rebels agreed to respect the
country’s territorial integrity and to hold peace talks, focussed on the
status of the north
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