EU Suspends Aid to Mali As Coup Rebels Loot Capital

European leaders have suspended aid operations in Mali after rebel soldiers instigated a coup on Wednesday.

The EU announced it will suspend development operations in Mali Friday, after mutinous soldiers overthrew President Amadou Toumani Toure, sealed the borders and allegedly arrested members of the government.

The announcement comes as Tuareg rebels vowed to continue their battle with Malian forces to gain more territory in the north of the country.

Mali has achieved steady development progress in recent years which can only be preserved in a stable and democratic environment, EU Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said, according to Reuters.

In the face of the deteriorating security situation in the north of Mali and the looming food crisis in the region I urge all the parties to take care of the civilian population and ensure respect for human life.

The coup has drawn international condemnation, with the U.S., EU and the African Union all calling for the return of constitutional rule.

On Thursday, soldiers calling themselves the National Committee for the Establishment of Democracy, said they ousted Toure because of incompetence in not giving them enough weapons to counter a rebellion by Tuaregs, a nomadic ethnic group spread across the Sahara Desert.

The rebels declared a national curfew, closed Mail's borders and reportedly sealed off the airport in the capital, Bamako.

The whereabouts of Toure, the democratically elected president, is still unknown.

There were reports of looting by soldiers in the capital Bamako on Friday, with supplies of fuel and food running low in many areas of the city.

People are afraid because of the soldiers. Often (they take) what is in the car or they make you get out and take the car or sometimes the soldiers themselves just break into shops, said Bamako resident Adama Quindo, according to Reuters.

I am a driver but there is no fuel for the car, I do not even have fuel for my bike to go back home, said Youssouf Diawara as he queued with other motorists for petrol.

Bread is becoming scarce, I made a mistake this morning, I should have bought more, said another Bamako resident, adding he had bought only one loaf.

The rebellion has also spooked investors in the region's gold miners, with shares in companies such as Avion -- who have two flagship mining projects in Mali -- tumbling 25 percent on Thursday.