ARTICLE: Timbuktu Shrines Trial: Why the destruction of cultural heritage is history repeating itself

[ENCATC Understanding Heritage]

On Tuesday, alleged Malian jihadi leader Ahmad Al-Faqi Al-Mahdi appeared at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for a hearing on whether he should be put on trial for destroying part of the North African country’s rich cultural heritage.

Al-Mahdi is accused of overseeing the destruction in 2012 of medieval mausoleums and the Sidi Yahia mosque, which formed part of Timbuktu’s World Heritage Site. Al-Mahdi is the first suspect in ICC’s history to potentially face prosecution for attacks against cultural heritage as opposed to direct humanitarian reasons.

Read the full article: http://europe.newsweek.com/timbuktu-shrines-international-criminal-court-433384?rm=eu