The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that four Barrick Gold employees who were recently arrested in Mali have been freed, the Canadian gold miner said. The Globe's Niall McGee writes that Reuters last week reported that the Barrick employees were arrested in Mali over alleged financial crimes. Kathy du Plessis, a spokesperson for Barrick, confirmed the release of the employees in a statement to The Globe. Their release comes a day after Barrick reached a tentative agreement with the Mali government over a mining dispute that had dragged on for months. Mali last year introduced a new mining code aimed at imposing higher royalties on foreign companies operating in the country and taking up to a 35-per-cent ownership stake in mines. The ownership between Barrick and Mali of the Loulo-Gounkoto mining complex is currently split 80:20 in favour of the Canadian miner. Barrick had pushed back on the new mining code and challenged an audit of the company's operations in the country conducted by the military junta government. Shares in Barrick closed up 1.9 per cent on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday to $27.41 apiece. In the past few years, Mali has cut ties with France and aligned itself with Russia.