Four peacekeepers from Ivory Coast died from an improvised explosive device and an attack Wednesday by unidentified gunmen in the Timbuktu region.

A man wounded in the strike said the extremists had approached a group of civilians celebrating a wedding on Sunday, demanding that the men in attendance separate from the women.

The calls for greater involvement follow a coup in August that has once again left the country under military rule even as violence between different armed groups continues to spiral out of control.

The appointment of a civilian prime minister was a major condition imposed by the West African regional economic bloc, ECOWAS, on Mali to lift sanctions that were imposed after an Aug. 18 coup.

The president and vice-president will be chosen by a group of people appointed by the junta however, according to Moussa Camara, spokesman for the talks.

The comments came hours after the junta hastily met with prominent figures from the opposition coalition following a public dispute that highlighted emerging divisions.

``Canada strongly condemns the coup d'etat in Mali,'' Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said in a statement on Aug. 19, using diplomatic language usually reserved for only the most serious denunciations.

The coup leaders want to prepare a new constitution before holding any vote, said an official in the talks.

His words come as West African leaders are escalating pressure on the junta and urging them to restore President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to power.

Mali has arguably become the centre of the deadliest jihadi conflict in the world and is at high risk of disintegrating into two or more parts, Matthew Fisher says.