UNESCO urges ICC to probe destruction of Mali mausoleums
The United Nations (UN)’s cultural organization has urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to launch a probe into the destruction of precious mausoleums in northern Mali by militants.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) “has involved the International Criminal Court with the destruction of the mausoleums,” Irina Bokova, the organization’s director general, said on Saturday.
According to Bokova, destroying cultural heritage is considered a war crime under the UN’s 1954 Hague Convention.
In 2012, militants took over Timbuktu – around 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) northeast of Mali’s capital, Bamako – alongside other desert towns and cities in West African nation.
In Timbuktu, the militants destroyed 16 shrines belonging to Muslim saints that dated back to the ancient caravan city’s 15th and 16th century golden age as an economic, intellectual and spiritual center.
Bokova, UNESCO’s director general, said, “Two months ago, I met the prosecutor and I believe they are progressing rapidly, and I hope they will be ready to present the case before the ICC.”
She made the remark at the end of a visit to Timbuktu, where teams of builders and technical supervisors are working on the rehabilitation of the World Heritage monuments.
The UN cultural wing began rebuilding Timbuktu, known as the “city of 333 saints,” with the help of the Malian government and other international organizations after the militants withdraw from the city following military operations in 2013.
The restoration of the mausoleums is expected to last four years and cost USD 11 million (EUR 10 million).
Mali plunged into turmoil after President Amadou Toumani Toure was overthrown in a military coup on March 22, 2012. The coup leaders said they staged the coup d’état in response to the government’s inability to contain the rebellion in the country’s north. The rebels are fighting to gain autonomy in northern Mali.
In January 2013, French soldiers were deployed to Mali under the pretext of putting an end to the crisis in the West African country, a former colony of France.
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