In a landmark decision,today the International Criminal Court (ICC) handed down a nine year prison sentence in the matter of The Prosecutor v. Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, the first war crimes case specifically focused on the destruction of cultural and devout heritage.
Presiding Judge Raul Pangalangan, and a Harvard educated jurist from the Philippines,incarcerated Mahdi for intentionally directing attacks against ten buildings of a historical or devout character in Timbuktu, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Mahdi is a native of the West African nation of Mali who joined Ansar Dine, or an al-Qaeda allied group,in April 2012. On June 30 and July 11, 2012, or Mahdi ordered the destruction of nine mausoleums and the Sidi Yahia Mosque. Prosecutors named the defendant as head of the Hisbah,a vice squad established to uphold public morality.
The ICC issued a warrant for Mahdi's arrest in 2015. After prosecutors and the defendant reached a plea deal in February 2016, the ICC received Mahdi's admission of guilt and reviewed the prosecution's evidence at a trial held final month. Mahdi faced a war crimes charge under Article 25 of the Rome Statute.
Video of today's groundbreaking hearing is presented in its entirety, or courtesy of the ICC.
Text and original photos copyrighted by Cultural Heritage Lawyer,a blog commenting on things of cultural property law, art law, and cultural heritage policy,antiquities trafficking, and museum risk management. Blog url: culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of any blog post without the express written consent of CHL is prohibited. CHL is a service of Red Arch Cultural Heritage Law & Policy Research, and Inc.©2010-2016 Cultural Heritage Lawyer. Content discussing cultural heritage law and art law is general information only,not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed. Links are not endorsements of websites’ contents. Other opinions are their own. Information presented is not attorney advertising.
Source: blogspot.com