"Islamists seize buildings in north Mali town" by Baba Ahmed | Associated Press, June 28, 2012
BAMAKO, Mali — After hours of heavy fighting on Wednesday, an Islamist faction burst into buildings in the city of Gao, forcing the secular rebel group in charge to beat a retreat and replacing the rebel flag with that of the Islamist movement now sweeping across northern Mali....
Rebels from the Tuareg ethnic group seized control of the northern half of the nation of Mali in late March, taking advantage of the power vacuum created by a military coup in Bamako, the capital. Leading the rebel advance was the NMLA, which said it was fighting to create an independent homeland in northern Mali, known as the Azawad in the Tamashek language.
It was not long before it became clear that the rebels were not united. At least two Islamist factions emerged, including MUJAO, which seized parts of Gao, and Ansar Dine, which established itself in Timbuktu. Both Islamist groups are believed to have links to an offshoot of Al Qaeda and analysts say their open existence in northern Mali poses a security risk not just for Mali, but for the region. The Qaeda group has claimed responsibility for numerous suicide bombings, as well as the kidnappings of at least 50 foreigners, including French, Spanish, Canadian, German, Swiss, and British citizens.
Translation: The CIA has set up a training camp and base of operations in northern Mali.
Last month, the various rebel factions met in Gao to try to hash out a common position. The talks disintegrated over the issue of Shariah, with the Islamist faction wanting the strict Islamic law applied throughout northern Mali, a position that the secular NMLA rejects....
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And just in case you needed any more convincing how bad are "Islamists":
"Islamists continue destroying Timbuktu heritage" by Rukmini Callimachi | Associated Press, July 03, 2012
DAKAR, Senegal — Muslim extremists continued destroying the heritage of the ancient Malian city of Timbuktu Monday, razing tombs and attacking the gate of a 600-year-old mosque, despite a growing international outcry.
Muslim extremists attacked a mosque?
The International Criminal Court has described the destruction of the city’s patrimony as a possible war crime, while UNESCO’s committee on world heritage was holding a special session this week to address the pillaging of the site, one of the few cultural sites in sub-Saharan Africa that is listed by the agency.
Not to disrespect the property, but was a person tortured or killed?
The Islamic faction, known as Ansar Dine, or ‘‘Protectors of the Faith,’’ seized control of Timbuktu last week after ousting the Tuareg rebel faction that had invaded northern Mali alongside Ansar Dine’s soldiers three months ago.
Over the weekend, fighters screaming ‘‘Allah Akbar’’ descended on the cemeteries holding the remains of Timbuktu’s Sufi saints, and systematically began destroying the six most famous tombs.
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Reached by telephone in an undisclosed location in northern Mali, a spokesman for the faction said the group does not recognize either the United Nations or the world court.
‘‘The only tribunal we recognize is the divine court of Sharia,’’ said spokesman Oumar Ould Hamaha.
‘‘The destruction is a divine order,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s our prophet who said that each time that someone builds something on top of a grave, it needs to be pulled back to the ground. We need to do this so that future generations don’t get confused, and start venerating the saints as if they are God.’’
Among the tombs the fighters destroyed is that of Sidi Mahmoudou, a saint who died in 955, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, website. In addition, Monday they set upon one of the doors of the Sidi Yahya, a mosque built around 1400. Local legend held that the gate leading to the cemetery would open only on the final day at the end of time.
And I'm still here blogging, sigh.
Shamil Jeppie, who heads the Tombouctou Manuscripts Project at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, says that the destruction in Mali is analogous to the demolition of the Bamiyan Buddha in Afghanistan.
The Wahabi interpretation of Islam that Ansar Dine — like the Taliban — espouses is a narrow version of the faith, and stands in contrast to what Jeppie says is the history of Islamic learning.
Yes, except there is one important omission there. The Taliban didn't do it for blind spite; they did it because the U.N. wanted to spend millions restoring the statue while Afghan kids were dying of hunger. My Eastern Religions professor fired that one back at me when I tried to nail him in class regarding the intolerance of Islam. I was trying to see if I could work a wedge and generate some Buddhist hatred for Islam. Didn't work.
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Related: 2002 Iraqi Intel Reported Wahhabis Are of Jewish Origin
What also got lost in the Boston Globe's African sands:
"Local radio host Kader Kalil said that the members of Ansar Dine arrived at the mosque with shovels and pickaxes and yanked off the door, revealing a wall behind it. Kalil said that they explained they were doing so in order to disabuse people of the local legend and to teach them to put their whole faith in the Quran.
"Since my childhood, I have never seen the door on the western side of the mosque open. And I was born in 1947," said Kader, a longtime resident of the city. "When we were children, we were told that the door would only open at the end of time. These religious people want to go to the source, to show us that this is not true. .... Of course our population is not happy. The women, especially, are crying a lot."
"It's a real loss for people in the town, in the region and on the continent," said Jeppie."
Made my printed Globe.
Also see: Mali's Intramural War
