Timbuktu mausoleum destruction suspect set to plead guilty
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — An Islamic radical accused of involvement in destroying historic mausoleums in the Malian desert city of Timbuktu goes on trial at the International Criminal Court on Monday and has already told judges he intends to plead guilty.
Al Mahdi, who is charged in attacks on nine of the mausoleums and a mosque, is the first suspect to face an ICC charge of deliberately attacking religious or historical monuments.
International rights group FIDH says its member organizations have documented a litany of crimes and filed a criminal complaint on behalf of 33 victims in Malian courts naming Al Mahdi and 14 others as alleged perpetrators of crimes including rape and sexual slavery.