Mali: Former rebels agree to attend peace conference

Former rebels in Mali on Tuesday reversed a decision to boycott a national reconciliation conference after receiving assurances from the government, a spokesperson said.

The former rebel alliance together with Mali’s opposition groupings had announced on Monday that they would boycott the talks, saying the planned 7-day meeting was not long enough and its aims were too limited. They however reversed their decision after announcement that the summit would go beyond the scheduled conclusion on April 2.

There was however no indication whether the opposition groups would reverse their decision to boycott.

The talks were agreed in a 2015 peace deal signed by Tuareg-led rebels, the government and pro-Bamako militias aimed at ending successive separatist uprisings in Mali’s north, which fell under the control of jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda in 2012.