International outrage grows over destruction of Mali shrines

[Type Username Here]

The United States is condemning the destruction of two more tombs in northern Mali as international outrage grows over Islamist militants' attacks on historic and religious landmarks in the nation.

Islamists ordered residents to leave the area and started razing the tombs in Timbuktu this week, witnesses said.

"They were shooting in the air to warn people of going near and entering the area," local resident Allimam Oumar said of the Tuesday attacks. "The militants think the shrines are idolatrous."

The tombs -- a common feature on Timbuktu postcards -- are the latest in attacks on landmarks listed as U.N. World Heritage sites.

Islamic militants have gone on a rampage for months, destroying sacred tombs in the city and vowing to target more. In May, elderly men kept watch over the main library after Islamists burned a different tomb in another attack in Timbuktu.

"We are outraged by the continued destruction of these World Heritage sites and the ongoing intimidation of local populations," said Victoria Nuland, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department . "We ... call for all parties to protect this invaluable cultural heritage for future generations. This is an assault not just on Mali but on the heritage of all Africans."

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[Robbie3000]

fukking religious zealots.

 

[Kuuuuush]

This is disgraceful

 

[The Real]

This is good evidence of a point not everyone has grasped yet, I think- that this brand of Salafism is thoroughly modern. The kind of old vs. new dichotomy that is often used to view these conflicts as a clash between progress and archaic culture isn't always relevant, least of all here. These people have fabricated a "tradition," act like its the original one, and then claim they are conservatives because they follow it, but as you can see, they're actually destroying what's really traditional over there. Whatever they say or believe about themselves, this is a wholly modern reaction to the political environment from which more secular or Westernized elements have come into conflict with them. The same holds true for many other forms of Islamism currently running wild in the Middle East. This is the fallout of modernity.

 

[WhiteDawg3000]

subs

 

[Techniec]

shyt makes u wanna cry man...theyre raping timbuktu

 

[ℒℴѵℯJay ELECTUA]

fukkin cowboys.

 

[88m3]

Really, really sad!