Islamic shrines desecrated in Africa
07/03/2012
Give the Islamic militants credit: They don’t discriminate when it comes to wanton destruction.
Monday in the west African nation of Mali, radical Islamists destroyed the “sacred” door of one of Timbuktu’s three ancient mosques after smashing seven tombs of Muslim saints over the weekend, witnesses said.
“The Islamists have just destroyed the door to the entrance of the Sidi Yahya mosque … they tore the sacred door off which we never open,” said a resident of the town.
A former tour guide in the once-popular tourist destination added, “They came with pick-axes, they cried ‘Allah’ and broke the door. It is very serious. Some of the people watching began crying.”
The Sidi Yahya mosque was completed in 1440, and was named for its first imam. It is one of Timbuktu’s three great mosques.
The action by Islamist group Ansar Dine (Defenders of Faith) was the latest in a three-day rampage that involved destroying cultural treasures in the historic city.
