REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BAMAKO -- At least 10 people were killed in northern Mali in the last week in reprisal killings over the murder of a tribal elder, officials told AFP on Tuesday.

A series of clashes took place between members of the Tuareg people, sections of which have led uprisings against Mali's government for decades.

Some have recently forged alliances with jihadist groups, while others are frequently accused of banditry.

A local counsellor in the northern Menaka district said a young man who died of his wounds on Monday became the 10th to lose his life in fighting that erupted after tribal elder's killing a week ago.

"In revenge for the murder, armed men belonging to the Tuareg tribe of the tribal elder attacked another Tuareg tribe accused of killing him. On Monday there were (more) reprisals," a local counsellor told AFP.

Tuareg-led rebels allied with Al-Qaeda-linked groups briefly took control of vast stretches of Mali's north in 2012, before being routed by French troops the following year.

Their influence on Tuareg communities is still a concern as the government attempts to enact a peace agreement signed by the former rebels and rival pro-government armed groups.

Menaka mayor Mohamed Ag Bayes told AFP he had contacted communities involved in the area by telephone from the capital Bamako in an attempt to stem the violence.

"I made calls to some community leaders so we can have some calm... more than 10 people were killed," he told AFP, adding he wanted to bring the rival Tuaregs together face-to-face to "keep the peace".

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