Tuareg Rebels, Malian Government Reach Peace Deal

The end has finally been reached in a conflict birthed in animosity and blood in the Saharan nation of Mali today, as government officials and Tuareg separatists have signed a peace deal that paves the way for the return to normalcy with elections within the next month.

In what started as a simple revolt by a nomadic people long oppressed by the national government quickly spread to a French led intervention to put down an al-Qaeda insurgency that took over the rebel's mantle, proclaimed Northern Mali their own and destroyed thousands of years worth of historical artifacts.

And with the al-Qaeda insurgency squashed by French and Chadian forces over the winter, Mali was able to resolve their own differences and come to today's agreement fostered by Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore, which will allow for a new Malian President to be elected and hopefully a final and lasting peace.

This deal isn't the end entirely, as Tuareg rebels will not lay down their weapons yet, but it sets the table for further negotiations that will hopefully lead to a stronger and more prosperous Mali after a year of miserable conflict that devoured the entire north and almost led to a complete jihadist takeover of the country.

What say you?