More than 15,000 people including Malian military personnel have fled to neighbouring countries since members of the Tuareg ethnic group launched a rebellion against the government last month, aid officials say.
Some civilians were fleeing violent areas, while others feared there could be revenge attacks against those believed to be Tuareg. At least one Tuareg family's home has been attacked near the capital, Bamako.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says 10,000 people had crossed into Niger after fighting in towns across the border, and the humanitarian group is preparing to provide food and shelter. "Some of these people have been taken in by villagers, but the local capacity was very quickly overwhelmed," said Juerg Eglin, head of ICRC delegation for Niger and
Mali.
Another 5,000 people have fled to Mauritania, according to an official who works at an international humanitarian organisation based in Mauritania's capital. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorised to provide figures to the media.
The Tuaregs, a nomadic people dispersed across the Sahara desert, have risen up against the central government in Mali several times since the country's independence from France in 1960.
The latest rebellion, launched in January, broke years of relative peace, and is being fuelled by the return of Tuaregs from Libya who had fought in Muammar Gaddafi's army.
In the past two weeks, the Tuareg group has attacked six towns spread over more than 500 miles across Mali's vast north.
A group calling itself the National Movement for the Liberation of the Azawad (MNLA) was formed in October and seeks self-determination of the north of Mali. The government has accused the group of joining forces with al-Qaida's North
Africa branch, which is active in the region. The MNLA denies the accusation.
Among those fleeing to Niger were military personnel and their families, said Franck Kudzo Kuwonu of the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the capital, Niamey.
Although there is no evidence that those with northern features are being systematically targeted in Mali on a wide-scale basis, there is a tangible sense of panic among Tuareg and those who feel they might be mistaken for Tuareg. Even people from countries such as Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia have been leaving Mali on such fears.
On Wednesday, Mali's president addressed the nation and urged people not blame Tuareg and others with northern features for the acts of just a few rebels. "Those who attacked certain military bases and towns in the north should not be confused with our Tuareg, Arab, Fulani and Songhai compatriots who live with us," Amadou Toumani Touré said in a speech carried on state television.
The president's message did not stop the protests in the capital and other southern towns such as Segou and Sikasso on Thursday and Friday, and many in the south fear what might happen to them. "When you see so many people leaving, I wonder whether I've made the right decision to say," said one Arab man who has lived in Bamako for many years and spoke on condition of anonymity.
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