Mali's main Tuareg factions say they will boycott talks with the government next week on implementing a 2015 peace agreement, dimming hopes of attaining peace in the West African country.

The main separatist groups in northern Mali - the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) and Platform, a coalition of pro-government Tuareg - said they could not take part in the conference, explaining that it was not sufficiently inclusive.

"We cannot take part in a conference which, far from uniting, risks being divisive," the groups said in a statement on Saturday.

The 2015 peace accord was meant to draw a line under a conflict that has pitted nomadic Tuaregs in the north against the government in the south.

But the implementation of the agreement has been held up by bickering, while armed groups affiliated to al-Qaeda have exploited the security vacuum to step up attacks.

After months of delays and arguments, there had been some signs of progress in recent weeks with the return of state authority to some cities from which it had been absent since the Tuareg revolt began in 2012.

READ MORE: Mali conflict puts over 250,000 orphans at risk

In April 2012, a nomadic rebel group called the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) seized control of an area larger than France before being ousted by al-Qaeda-linked groups who imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law on the local population, carrying out amputations and executions.

In January 2013, France launched a military intervention in its former West African colony to stop the rebels' southward offensive.

Despite continued French troop deployments, a United Nations peacekeeping mission and years of peace talks, Mali remains beset by unrest and ethnic strife.

In recent months, joint patrols by fighters from the various armed factions and the Malian security forces have helped restore confidence, but tensions remain high.

Earlier this month, armed groups surrounded Timbuktu, once a popular tourist destination because of its fabled history of gilded Islamic empires that grew rich on trade connecting Africa's interior with its Mediterranean coast.

The armed groups were opposed to the return of state authority to the city, and no agreement has yet been reached to allow it to go ahead. </s> BAMAKO: Mali's main Tuareg separatist factions said on Saturday they would boycott talks with the government next week on implementing a nearly 2-year-old peace accord that has been riven by quarrelling.

The pact signed in 2015 was meant to draw a line under the conflict that pitted nomadic Tuaregs in the desert north against a government seated in the south and which has destabilised Mali, turning it into a launch pad for global jihadi groups.

But implementing the agreement has been held up by bickering, while jihadists have exploited the security vacuum to step up attacks.

"The CMA and Platform declare solemnly that they cannot take part in this conference," a statement by the Tuareg rebels said, explaining that it was not sufficiently inclusive and that they were not consulted about the date when it was fixed.

"We cannot take part in a conference which, far from uniting, risks being divisive."

After months of delays and arguments, there have been some signs of progress in recent weeks with the return of state authority to some cities from which it had been absent since the Tuareg uprising began in 2012.

Joint patrols staffed by fighters from the various armed factions and the Malian security forces have also helped restore confidence.

But tensions remain high. Earlier this month, armed groups surrounded Timbuktu, once a tourist trap because of its fabled history of gilded Islamic empires that grew rich on trade connecting Africa's interior with its Mediterranean coast.

The armed groups were opposed to the return of state authority to the city, and no agreement has yet been reached to allow it to go ahead.

Most government posts have been empty since the Tuaregs and desert jihadists took over northern Mali, before French forces intervened to push them back in 2013, but a breakthrough last month allowed authority to be restored to several cities.

Despite continued French troop deployments, a U.N. peacekeeping mission and years of peace talks, Mali remains beset by banditry, unrest and ethnic strife. </s> The United Nations has called off a reconciliation conference aimed at organizing elections in Libya because of fighting raging near the capital city.

Ghassan Salame, the UN envoy to Libya, said the national conference planned for next week would be postponed until further notice due to the on-going battle for Tripoli.

"We cannot ask people to take part in the conference during gunfire and air strikes," he said, adding that he hoped the meeting would go ahead as soon as possible.

Major players in Libya were meant to meet in the Western border town of Ghadames on April 14 to 16 to hammer out a deal paving the way to nation-wide elections later this year.

The meeting was the center piece of months of UN diplomacy, and the central goal was to broker a deal between Fayez al-Serraj, the prime minister of the internationally recognized government in Tripoli, and Khalifa Haftar, a renegade general whose self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) controls the east of the country.

But the plan was thrown into chaos last week when Gen Haftar launched an assault on Tripoli, the seat of Mr Serraj’s government, on the pretext of rooting out terrorists. </s> Nouakchott (AFP) - Counting began on Saturday in Mauritania after a referendum on constitutional changes sought by President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who derided the efforts of a boycott movement that has galvanised mass protests during the campaign.

Aziz is pushing to abolish the country's Senate and several other state bodies and to make a small alteration to the national flag, measures that have galvanised boycotters hoping to sap the vote's credibility by forcing a low turnout.

Polling stations closed at 7:00 pm (1900 GMT) after peaceful voting, with no repeat of the violent clashes seen in the final week of campaigning.

After voting in the morning, Aziz said the changes would bring Mauritania "peace, security, stability and development", and dismissed the boycott movement as existing "only on paper and social media".

The boycott movement draws broad political support from figures as diverse as religious conservatives and anti-slavery activists.

They have held several protests attracting thousands of supporters, but have also been prevented from demonstrating by the security forces, who on Thursday shut down several planned rallies close to the capital with tear gas and beat protesters back with batons.

Bedenna Ould Sidi, the head of operations for the country's electoral commission, said the referendum had been a success but turnout was not available.

A source close to the electoral commission told AFP around 1400 GMT that turnout was around 20 percent in Nouakchott and 40 percent in the country's interior.

Around 1.4 million Mauritanians were eligible to vote, and results could be available as early as Sunday if counting proceeds quickly.

While Aziz and his supporters are seeking a "Yes" vote, one moderate opposition party is seeking a "No", while the rest have joined civil society groups to call for a total boycott for amendments they consider unconstitutional.

The Forum for Unity and Democracy (FNDU), a coalition of parties spearheading the boycott, thanked the Mauritanian people for their "positive response" on Saturday night and said they believed turnout had not broken 15 percent.

They repeated earlier claims that Aziz's supporters would arrange for a "vast fraud" to win the vote and promised to reveal tactics aimed at pushing through what they termed an "anticonstitutional farce".

The UN Human Rights Office said Thursday that "protest leaders were reportedly beaten up and a number of them were arrested" during campaign rallies in the last few weeks, urging the government to ensure fair and credible elections.

The opposition also fears that despite Aziz's claims to the contrary, he is laying the groundwork for a third term in power, as his own prime minister said back in July he supported the idea.

Aziz himself fuelled speculation on Saturday by saying that "in two years, or even 10 years other amendments could arise to adapt our constitution to reality," without elaborating.

He also said journalists questioning why European Union observers were not present had a "colonial mentality", describing the EU as "not a barometer for the truth."

Sidi, the polling chief, said foreign observers were present but would not be drawn on where they had come from.

The proposal to modify the constitution, in force since 1991, was rejected by the Senate in March, leading Aziz to call the referendum to push through the changes.

The most contentious measure remains the abolition of the Senate and its replacement with elected regional councils, and senators have held a sit-in this week and demanded apologies from Aziz for accusing them of corruption.

Unrepentant, Aziz said at a final rally on Thursday the Senate "costs a lot, has no use and does nothing", and vowed to launch legal action against several senators.

The president came to power in a coup in 2008 and was elected in 2009 and again in 2014 for a second five-year term.

Under the proposed change to the flag, red bands would be added to the current green flag with yellow Islamic crescent and star, to honour those who fought for freedom from colonial master France. </s> BAMAKO: Gunmen killed at least 134 Fulani herders in central Mali on Saturday, a local mayor said, the deadliest such attack of recent times in a region reeling from worsening violence.

The assaults on the villages of Ogossagou and Welingara took place as a U.N. Security Council mission visited Mali seeking solutions to violence that killed hundreds of civilians last year and is spreading across West Africa’s Sahel region.

Moulaye Guindo, mayor of the nearby town of Bankass, said armed men, dressed as traditional Donzo hunters, encircled and attacked Ogossagou at about 4 a.m. (0400 GMT).

“We are provisionally at 134 bodies recovered by the gendarmes,” Guindo told Reuters by telephone from Ogossagou.

He said another nearby Fulani village, Welingara, had also been attacked, causing “a number” of deaths, but he did not yet know how many.

Security sources said the dead included pregnant women, children and elderly people.

That group said that raid was payback for violence by Mali’s army and militiamen against the Fulani.

French forces intervened in Mali, a former French colony, in 2013 to push back a militant advance from the desert north but the militants have since regrouped and expanded their presence into central Mali and the neighbouring countries.

Some 4,500 French troops remain based in the wider Sahel, most of them in Mali. The United States also has hundreds of troops in the region.

Security Council ambassadors met with Malian president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and other government officials on Friday evening to discuss the violence and the slow implementation of a 2015 peace agreement with non-Islamist armed groups.

“Clear sense of frustration among many Security Council members at pace of implementation of Mali Peace Agreement,” Britain’s representative on the mission, Stephen Hickey, wrote on Twitter. “Security Council prepared to impose sanctions on those who impede its implementation.” </s> BAMAKO (Reuters) - Gunmen killed at least 134 Fulani herders in central Mali on Saturday, a local mayor said, the deadliest such attack of recent times in a region reeling from worsening ethnic and jihadist violence.

The assaults on the villages of Ogossagou and Welingara took place as a U.N. Security Council mission visited Mali seeking solutions to violence that killed hundreds of civilians last year and is spreading across West Africa’s Sahel region.

Moulaye Guindo, mayor of the nearby town of Bankass, said armed men, dressed as traditional Donzo hunters, encircled and attacked Ogossagou at about 4 a.m. (0400 GMT).

“We are provisionally at 134 bodies recovered by the gendarmes,” Guindo told Reuters by telephone from Ogossagou.

He said another nearby Fulani village, Welingara, had also been attacked, causing “a number” of deaths, but he did not yet know how many.

Security sources said the dead included pregnant women, children and elderly people.

One Ogossagou resident, who asked not to be identified, said the attack appeared to be in retaliation for an al Qaeda affiliate’s claim of responsibility on Friday for a raid last week that killed 23 soldiers.

That group said that raid was payback for violence by Mali’s army and militiamen against the Fulani.

Jihadist groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State have exploited ethnic rivalries in Mali and its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger in recent years to boost recruitment and render vast swathes of territory virtually ungovernable.

French forces intervened in Mali, a former French colony, in 2013 to push back a jihadist advance from the desert north but the militants have since regrouped and expanded their presence into central Mali and the neighbouring countries.

Some 4,500 French troops remain based in the wider Sahel, most of them in Mali. The United States also has hundreds of troops in the region.

Security Council ambassadors met with Malian president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and other government officials on Friday evening to discuss the violence and the slow implementation of a 2015 peace agreement with non-Islamist armed groups.

“Clear sense of frustration among many Security Council members at pace of implementation of Mali Peace Agreement,” Britain’s representative on the mission, Stephen Hickey, wrote on Twitter. “Security Council prepared to impose sanctions on those who impede its implementation.” </s> The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President José Singer Weisinger (Dominican Republic):

The members of the Security Council were briefed on 16 January 2019 by the Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, Bintou Keita, on the situation in Mali.

The members of the Security Council welcomed the recent positive steps achieved in the implementation of the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, including through: the establishment of 10 district-level interim administrations in the Kidal, Ménaka and Timbuktu regions; the launch of an accelerated disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and integration process for 1,423 combatants; the holding of a second high-level meeting on the implementation of the defence and security pillar of the Agreement, which allowed further progress towards the definition of a common vision on the reconstituted Malian defence and security forces, the establishment of a regional territorial police force and of anti-terror special units, and the modalities of conduct of the disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and integration and of the security sector reform processes; as well as the establishment of a working group on the participation of women in the peace process, under the leadership of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

The members of the Security Council commended the Malian parties for the establishment of a weekly coordination framework between representatives of the Government of Mali, the Plateforme coalition of armed groups and the Coordination des Mouvements de l’Azawad coalition of armed groups, under the authority of the Minister for Social Cohesion, Peace and National Reconciliation. They welcomed the mobilization of the Prime Minister in support to the implementation of the Agreement. They called upon all Malian stakeholders to unite their efforts following President [Ibrahim Boubacar] Keïta’s re-election and work together to promote sustainable peace, human rights, and tackle the security and development challenges facing Mali.

The members of the Security Council expressed a significant sense of impatience with parties over the persistent delays in the full implementation of key provisions of the Agreement. They urged the Government of Mali and the Plateforme and Coordination armed groups to take immediate and concrete action to effectively implement the remaining key provisions of the Agreement referenced in paragraph 4 of resolution 2423 (2018) which have not yet been implemented.

The members of the Security Council recalled the provisions of resolution 2423 (2018) requesting the Secretary-General to report 6 months after the presidential inauguration on progress in the implementation of the Agreement and expressing the intent of the Security Council, in the absence of significant progress, to request the Secretary-General to provide options for potential significant adaptation of MINUSMA after the expiration of its current mandate. They further recalled the provisions of resolution 2423 (2018) expressing the intention of the Security Council to follow closely the timely implementation of the road map adopted on 22 March 2018 and to respond with measures pursuant to resolution 2374 (2017) should the parties not implement the agreed-upon commitments within the announced timeframe. They recalled, in this context, the listing decision of 20 December 2018 of the 2374 Sanctions Committee. They stressed that all parties to the Agreement share the primary responsibility to make steadfast progress in its implementation.

The members of the Security Council expressed growing concerns about the continued deterioration of the security situation in central Mali. They strongly condemned the continued attacks, including terrorist attacks, against civilians, representatives from local, regional and State institutions, as well as national, international and United Nations security forces. They further strongly condemned the recent surge in intercommunal violence which has led to the loss of numerous innocent lives. They urged Malian authorities to ensure that those responsible for crimes involving violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law are held accountable and brought to justice without undue delay.

The members of the Security Council underlined that stabilization of the situation in central Mali requires a fully integrated plan encompassing simultaneous pursuit of progress on security, governance, development, reconciliation, as well as protection and promotion of human rights. They welcomed the measures taken by the Government of Mali to implement its comprehensive plan to re-establish State presence in Central Mali (Plan de sécurisation intégrée des regions du Centre — PSIRC). They highlighted the importance of the provision of basic services for all, including the reopening of schools. They took positive note of the recent visits of President Keïta and of the Prime Minister in the Mopti region. They encouraged further and continued efforts from the Government of Mali and called for enhanced support by all actors. They further encouraged MINUSMA to continue to support the restoration of State authority in the centre and to implement its good offices, reconciliation and protection of civilians mandate, according to the relevant provisions of resolution 2423 (2018).

The members of the Security Council reiterated their full support to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Mali and Head of MINUSMA, Mahamat Saleh Annadif, the international mediation team led by Algeria, MINUSMA and the other security presences in Mali and in the Sahel region, as mentioned in resolution 2423 (2018). They emphasized the central role the Special Representative of the Secretary-General should continue to play to support and oversee the implementation of the Agreement by the Malian parties. They called on all members of the Comité de suivi de l’Accord and other relevant national and international partners to increase their engagement in support to the full, effective and inclusive implementation of the Agreement.

The members of the Security Council reaffirmed their strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Mali. They underlined the importance of an inclusive implementation of the Agreement, which associates all Malian actors supportive of the peace process. They further underlined that lasting peace and security in the Sahel region will not be achieved without the full, effective and inclusive implementation of the Agreement, as well as a combination of political, security and development efforts.

For information media. Not an official record. </s> The gathering of Libyan leaders in Paris this week marked a positive step for the violence-wracked country, but analysts warn the absence of key players could make the optimism short-lived.

The Tuesday meeting hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron brought together four leaders representing most -- but notably not all -- of Libya's rival factions.

Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, head of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli, was at the table along with military strongman Khalifa Haftar, whose rival Libyan National Army dominates the country's east.

Also present were Aguila Saleh Issa, the parliament speaker based in the eastern city of Tobruk, and Khalid Al-Mishri, the newly elected head of the High Council of State.

The leaders dispute each other's legitimacy and are entwined with numerous militias who are known to switch their allegiances.

Despite the stark differences, the four leaders agreed to hold parliamentary and presidential elections on December 10 and vowed to respect the results.

They also said they would work towards phasing out parallel institutions and unifying the Libyan Central Bank.

In a sign of the fragility of such promises, the Libyans verbally agreed on the proposals rather than formally signing a text.

Rachid Khechana, director of the Mediterranean Centre for Libyan Studies, said a signature on paper does not necessary mean action.

"Even if the declaration had been signed, we know how many (Libyan) politicians, in particular MPs, have failed to uphold their commitment," he said, citing a 2015 Libya deal agreed in Morocco which numerous signatories did not implement.

Khechana highlighted the absence in Paris of "groups and networks of great influence, including the tribal chiefs and the armed groups".

In western Libya, "some of these groups are more influential than the government," he added, in reference to the UN-backed Government of National Accord.

Federica Saini Fasanotti, from the Brookings Institution in Washington, agreed "the solution in Libya is strictly connected to the armed groups".

As long as the international community continues to negotiate with political leaders "who are not fully recognised on the ground... the situation in Libya won't be solved," she said.

The International Crisis Group drew on the absence of a delegation from the city of Misrata, home to the most powerful armed groups in western Libya.

GNA deputy premier Ahmed Maiteeq, who represents Misrata, refused to attend the Paris meeting according to one of his advisers.

Ibrahim Ben Rjab, a senior military figure in the Misrata militia, told AFP the city had boycotted the meeting in protest at the presence of Haftar whom they accuse of wanting to establish a dictatorship.

While there are "some positive points" to come out of Paris, he said the agreement has no official status and "ultimately is not worth anything because it hasn't been signed".

Fathi Bashagha, a Misrata lawmaker, said that "the outcome of the Paris meeting is good," but the pledges "remain words and wishes on paper, in the absence of a clear mechanism for applying them".

Analysts remain sceptical that Libya will go to the polls in December, despite leaders in Paris agreeing to adopt the necessary laws by September 16.

"The legal framework for holding elections remains opaque," said Human Rights Watch.

Staging elections is "unrealistic from a strictly technical perspective," said Crisis Group.

"Neither the legal nor the constitutional framework is in place -- hurdles that may prove impossible to overcome within a short timeframe," the organisation added. </s> The four key leaders in war-torn Libya have agreed at a summit in Paris to an ambitious, and potentially unrealistic, plan to stage “credible, peaceful” parliamentary and legislative elections in the country on 10 December.

Emmanuel Macron, the French president and the summit’s host, hailed the agreement as a turning point in efforts to bring about reconciliation in Libya, saying it represented a new impetus to restore Libya’s sovereignty.

“We now have clear commitments for the country, an approved calendar for parliamentary and presidential elections,” he said.

The parties also agreed that by 16 September they would establish the constitutional basis for elections and adopt the necessary electoral laws.

The key passage reads: “We pledge … to work constructively with the United Nations to hold credible and peaceful elections on December 10 and to respect the results of the elections.”

The statement is endorsed, but not signed, by Fayez al-Sarraj, the prime minister of Libya’s UN-backed government in Tripoli; the military leader of the east of the country, Khalifa Haftar; the president of the house of representatives, Aguila Saleh; and the head of the council of state, Khaled al-Mishri.

Macron said the agreement had not been signed because the groups needed to consult, and any case they did not recognise one another’s authority.

There had been a dispute about whether the presidential elections could go ahead without prior agreement between the factions on the basics of a constitution. The two chief factions based in the east and west of the country have been unable to agree a constitution for two years, but the election of a new national leadership could cut through these disagreements.

Twenty-four organisations, including five African heads of state attended the summit, in a sign of how badly the Libyan civil war has damaged the continent and southern Europe.

Speaking at a press conference after the agreement, Macron said he was not naive and there remained a risk of terrorists disrupting the elections. Twelve people were killed in an Islamic State attack on the headquarters of the Electoral Commission in Tripoli on 2 May.

But Macron said it had been the first time the entire international community with an interest in Libya had come together to endorse this process of reconciliation. He said there was Libyan will to move to elections that justified pushing the timetable forward.

Ghassan Salamé, the UN special envoy for Libya, admitted there remained huge work to be done, and he called for a ceasefire among all the groups to allow the preparations for the elections, saying “enough blood has been spilled”.

The agreement states Libyan security forces “will be in charge of guaranteeing the electoral process”, with “appropriate support” from the UN, regional organisations and the international community.

Those responsible for any obstruction of the electoral process will have to “render an account”, the accord adds, without specifying what, if any, sanctions it could incur.

To “improve the climate for national elections”, the Tobruk-based house of representatives close to Haftar will have to relocate to Tripoli and the parallel government established in the eastern part of the country will eventually have to be dismantled.

The two houses must “immediately work to unify the central bank of Libya and other institutions”, they agreed. The agreement also proposes a national inclusive conference, but no timetable was set.

In the medium term, the military and security forces, divided into multiple militias besides the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) of Haftar, will also have to be unified under the auspices of the UN.

Claudia Gazzini, senior Libya analyst for the non-governmental International Crisis Group, said: “There is some symbolic importance to the fact that the four Libyan leaders agreed to sit together. But the key will be to see if the four deliver on their promises and how others, including their allies at home, react.”

She described the timetable as extremely optimistic and expressed concern that it put too much emphasis on elections as a solution as opposed to the military, security and economic dimensions.



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Haftar’s commitment to democracy has been questioned by his critics, and in the run-up to the conference the LNA was making gains at the gates of Derna, a key coastal town held by Islamists.



Haftar has presented himself to the west as a strongman who can bring order to the country and end the crisis that has led to more than 400,000 Africans being trafficked through Libya to reach Italy by boat.

The advance of populist parties in Italy has largely been put down to the Italian public’s anger at the failure to control the flow of African refugees and migrants. Although the number of arrivals has slowed dramatically over the past year, more than 11,000 people have been registered in Italy so far in 2018 after being picked up in the Mediterranean. The figure is more than 75% down on the same point in 2017.

The scale of the public opposition appears to have caught pro-European Italians by surprise. Reflecting on the recent Italian elections, Emma Bonino, a former Italian minister, told a Paris seminar on Monday: “We knew there was a wave of scepticism, nationalism and racism that could come in but we did not know it would be a tsunami.”
The Coordination of Azawad Movements, a coalition of Tuareg groups, announce that they will boycott a peace conference scheduled next week on implementing a 2015 peace agreement saying it was "not sufficiently inclusive".