Mali rebels, pro-government fighters clash
Iran Press TV
Wed Feb 4, 2015 5:19PM
Malian rebels and pro-government fighters have clashed in the north of the country near a town controlled by pro-government militias.
The two sides exchanged fire near Tabankort on Wednesday.
"Pro-government armed groups took control of the town of Tabricha, 15 kilometers (nine miles) from Tabankort," said a source from the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).
Both sides confirmed Wednesday's clashes, each claiming to have "taken the upper hand."
Pro-government militias have clashed over the last month with armed rebels, leading to the deaths of fighters and civilians.
Around a dozen people were killed last week when a pro-government armed group, including bombers, launched an attack on rebel fighters in the town.
MINUSMA said on January 28 that it had given up demilitarizing Tabankort.
"The project having been misunderstood and diverted from its main objective is no longer required," it said and noted that its concern was to identify a way out of the crisis in Tabankort, where civilians are in danger because of fighting.
Northern Mali has been a flashpoint of conflict since the country's independence from French rule in 1960.
HN/HSN/SS
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