An ongoing dispute over ownership stakes in Barrick’s operation in Mali has led to the arrest of mining officials, the government’s gold seizure and the company’s shutdown of its mine.

Mali’s military government has started seizing gold stocks of the Canadian mining company Barrick as part of a legal battle over the share of revenue owed to the West African state, according to an internal Barrick letter seen by The Associated Press.

Canada's Barrick Gold said on Monday it would suspend operations in Mali if the country does not lift restrictions on gold shipments within the coming week, as the mining group faces what sources told Reuters amounted to a confiscation order.