Tuareg, Arab rebels resume peace talks with Mali government

Tuareg and Arab rebels are resuming peace talks with the Malian government, notably about the northern territories where they are fighting for autonomy, 11 days after they walked out of the negotiations, one of their spokesmen said Saturday. The announcement by Ibrahim Ag Mohamed Assaleh, in charge of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad's external relations, after a meeting in the Burkina Faso capital with President Blaise Compaore should restart the peace process as violence flares up in Mali's northern regions. The rebels' walkout late last month dealt a blow to hopes of a durable peace in the troubled west African country, which only elected a new president in August after 18 months of political crisis sparked by a military coup in March last year