Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, the Malian Islamic extremist who pleaded guilty to destruction of historic mausoleums in Timbuktu. War crimes judges on Tuesday sentenced a former Islamist rebel who admitted wrecking holy shrines during Mali’s 2012 conflict to nine years in prison, in the first such case to focus on destruction of cultural heritage. Al-Mahdi expressed remorse for his involvement in the destruction of 10 mausoleums and religious sites in Timbuktu . The sites, nine of them on the UNESCO World Heritage list, “had an emotional and symbolic meaning for the residents of Timbuktu”, the panel of judges at The Hague said. By striking at their most meaningful religious sites, al-Mahdi participated in “a war activity aimed at breaking the soul of the people”, said presiding Judge Raul Pangalangan.

Source: The Hindu September 27, 2016 20:03 UTC