"Revived interest in old books could restore Timbuktu’s glory" by Karin Brulliard, Washington Post | January 10, 2010
Remember, readers, the Washington Post is the CIA 's newspaper, so this is straight from the horse's mou... well, try the other end.
TIMBUKTU, Mali - The effort has been slow going. Travel warnings about Islamist insurgents in the area have deterred tourists....
In a West African town where nomads and traders eke out livings, a revival of world attention to hundreds of thousands of privately held manuscripts - which survived fire, rain, sand, and termites - represents an economic opportunity. But researchers and residents say the restoration of the books, most written in Arabic on fragile paper or lambskin, is also vital to showcasing Timbuktu’s - and, by extension, sub-Saharan Africa’s - more glorious past as a vibrant hub of scholarship....
Honestly, this is all most Americans know about Timbuktu, readers.
I only know from my history classes at school -- what little they told us -- of the beautiful empire of Songhai.
Most of the books remain in private hands and will probably stay that way: Many owners refuse to part with their books on the instructions of ancestors....
A half-dozen centuries ago, people were also walking - flocking, even - to Timbuktu. Its spot in the desert between North and sub-Saharan Africa and on the edge of the Niger River made it a crucial trade junction. A university of 25,000 students bustled with scholarship. Bazaars overflowed with books that arrived on the backs of camels. Timbuktu’s decline began in the late 16th century, when Moroccan raiders chased away scholars they viewed as threats.
I heard it was an INVASION!! Even CENTURIES later the Zionist newspaper won't cut the Muslims any slack, huh? But they are telling the truth about "terrorism."
Trade shifted to West African ports. The books that serve as a testament to those days were put away and neglected....
Related: Jewish Involvement in Black Slave Trade to the Americas
Yeah, strange how that gets left out of the Zionist MSM background of history, huh?
Looks like a terrorist to me.
After all, the place is crawling with them, right, *jewsmedia?
"Al Qaeda cell offers prisoner swap deal" by Associated Press | January 12, 2010
CAIRO - Al Qaeda’s North Africa offshoot demanded the release of four of its members in exchange for a French hostage it kidnapped two months ago, in a message posted on militant websites yesterday that gave a 20-day deadline.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb said its only condition for the freeing of Pierre Camatte is the release of four members of the group arrested by Mali several months ago....
--more--"Pffft!
