Mali ends crucial peace deal with rebels, raising concerns about a possible escalation of violence

Mali’s junta has terminated a crucial agreement it signed with local rebels which helped maintain a fragile peace in the country’s northern region, raising concerns about a possible escalation of violence

BAMAKO, Mali -- Mali’s junta has terminated a crucial agreement it signed with local rebels which helped maintain a fragile peace in the country’s northern region, the government announced, raising concerns about a possible escalation of violence.

The 2015 peace deal with the Tuareg rebel groups is ending “with immediate effect” because the rebels have failed to comply with its terms and because of “acts of hostility” by Algeria, which has been the main mediator in the peace efforts, government spokesperson Col. Abdoulaye Maiga said on state television Thursday night.

Neither Algeria nor the rebel groups have made any public comments in response to the announcement.

The campaign by the Tuareg rebels to create an independent state of Azawad in northern Mali threw the West African nation into a violent conflict for over a decade. In 2012, they dislodged the Malian military from the town, setting into motion a series of events that destabilized the country.

The peace deal backed by Algeria and welcomed by the United Nations reduced hostilities in the northern region before it appeared to collapse last year after both parties accused the other of failing to comply with it. Malian authorities also announced the prosecution of some rebel leaders.