Civilians killed amid clashes near Mali flashpoint town

BAMAKO (Reuters) - At least six civilians, including one aid worker, were killed in northern Mali on Thursday amid clashes between separatist rebels and pro-government militia, rebels and a local source said. The killings will further escalate tensions linked to fighting over the nearby flashpoint town of Menaka, the scene of repeated violations of a ceasefire agreement. Mali's government and allied militia have signed up to a peace deal but separatist rebels say more talks are needed, delaying international efforts to restore order to a zone awash with separatist and Islamist gunmen. The Spanish arm of aid agency Action Contre la Faim (ACF) confirmed that Moussa Ag Mohamedoun, one of its local employees, was killed in Tin Hama - a village in the Ansongo district in Gao region. ACF said it had suspended its operations in northern Mali as a result of the incident, but did not give details of how the local employee died or comment on any other people killed. A source who was told about the attack by eyewitnesses in Tin Hama said a total of six people were executed by pro-government GATIA militia on Thursday morning. The source, who asked not to be named, said the ACF aid worker was killed alongside two teachers, two students and a muezzin. The Tuareg-led Coordination of Movements of Azawad (CMA) separatist rebel coalition said nine civilians had been killed by government troops after initially being captured by militia. Neither the GATIA militia nor the Bamako government were available for comment. Elsewhere in Gao region, GATIA and CMA forces fought around Tin-Fadimata, around 30 km (20 miles) north of Menaka. Both sides gave conflicting versions of the clashes A spokeswoman for the U.N. mission said its troops had been sent to the area and would prevent the fighting from coming within five km (three miles) of Menaka. "Then the civilian population would be at risk. We warned them that's the line they should not cross," the spokeswoman, Radhia Achouri, said. Violence has continued in northern Mali despite a 2013 French-led intervention that pushed back al Qaeda-linked fighters who hijacked the Tuareg-led rebellion and seized two-thirds of the country in 2012. A ceasefire deal was signed between the government, its allies and northern separatist groups last year, but violations of the agreement have increased since pro-government fighters seized Menaka late last month. Even before the death of the ACF staff member, aid agencies have been struggling to reach tens of thousands of civilians displaced by fighting. Hundreds of thousands of people are in need of food aid.