Mali's junta has issued a decree to establish a committee to organise national peace and reconciliation talks, after it ended a 2015 peace deal with Tuareg rebels.
The decision to end the so-called Algiers accord raises fears of worsening insecurity in the West African nation.
In an apparent move to establish a new internal peace process, the junta's decree outlined the structure of a committee and the steps it should take to prepare talks. It did not give a timeframe or say which groups it wanted to include in the dialogue.
Tuareg rebel spokesperson Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane on Saturday told Reuters the new initiative was a "staged event" between groups who are already aligned.
Revoked deal
An alliance of Tuareg rebel groups on Friday acknowledged the termination of the 2015 peace deal in a statement and called on their members to review and update their objectives in light of the new situation.
Mali has been plagued by violence since 2012, when militants hijacked an uprising by the Tuareg groups who complained of government neglect and sought autonomy for the region they call Azawad.
The Tuaregs signed the peace accord with the Bamako government in 2015, but militant groups have gone on to kill thousands of civilians in insurgencies that have spread to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.
Kicking out foreign forces
The Tuareg peace agreement had come under increasing strain since the military consolidated power in two coups in 2020 and 2021.
The junta has kicked out French forces and the UN peacekeeping mission operating in the country.
Fighting between the Malian army and the separatists has escalated again since last August as they have jostled for position during the gradual withdrawal of UN peacekeepers.
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