Rebels in Mali announce ceasefire

Rebels in Mali have announced a ceasefire, saying they've achieved their goal of capturing the northern part of the country. The Tuareg rebels want to establish a separate country in the north. Meanwhile, Mali's government remains in turmoil following a recent coup by military officers. The political turmoil is causing a humanitarian crisis as people flee the violence.
“Most humanitarian needs are mostly those now related to displacement, especially in terms of shelter, food, essential items … also access to health care and nutrition support,” said Elisabeth Byrs, the spokesperson for the World Food Programme. “We are scaling up our operation, doing our best to reach those people.”

She warned of other economic consequences of the situation.

“The increased prices of petrol this might be a problem for those people, because all the commercial exchanges and flows from neighbouring countries such as Algeria and Mauritania has been reduced,” Byrs said. “So we need to scale up our operation. We are going to increase the humanitarian flights from Niger to Mali in order to address the needs of those people.”

Listen: