A Malian militant group has suspended a ceasefire with the government, saying officials are gearing up for war.
In a statement posted to its website, Islamist group Ansar Dine says it was willing to hold talks but says Mali's government has not shown "the least bit of sincere will for peace and negotiation."
The group accuses the government of buying arms, recruiting fighters, and mobilizing militias.
An Ansar Dine spokesman, Sanda Ould Boumama, confirmed the statement's authenticity to VOA.
Ansar Dine and the Tuareg separatist group MNLA agreed to a ceasefire with the government on December 21st.
The truce came a day after the U.N. Security Council approved a West African plan to deploy troops to Mali, with the goal of retaking the north from Ansar Dine and two other Islamist groups.
The two other groups -- the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa and al-Qaida in Islamic Maghreb -- have shunned negotiations taking place in Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou.