Mali: Islamists destroy Timbuktu heritage sites


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Thanks TXnMA. Since the Digest is about to go out, I'll just add this to the catalog and put the link in there, and again next week. In Timbuktu, Harsh Change Under Islamists Ethno-religious violence in Islamic Mali The Rush to Save Timbuktu's Crumbling Manuscripts Libraries in the sand reveal Africa's academic past Libraries in the sand reveal Africa's academic past Khan made trips to Niger, Sudan Khan's visit to Timbuktu was to prospect for uranium - dissident 'A Q Khan (Pakistani nuke scientist) visited Timbuktu for uranium' From the Desert, a Wellspring of Ancient Manuscripts To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.

Just another day with good Moslems in service to Allah.

"The Buddhas of Bamiyan . . . were dynamited and destroyed in March 2001 by the Taliban."

" . . . when Clinton was president . . . ."

Was there an earlier incident?

From Wikipedia: “Abdul Wahed, a Taliban commander operating in the area, announced his intention to blow up the Buddhas in 1997 even before he had taken control of the valley. Once he was in control of Bamiyan in 1998, Wahed drilled holes in the Buddhas’ heads for explosives. He was prevented from taking further action by the local governor and direct order of Mullah Omar, although tyres were burnt on the head of the great Buddha.[17] In July 1999, Mullah Mohammed Omar issued a decree in favor of the preservation of the Bamiyan Buddha's statue. Because Afghanistan's Buddhist population no longer exists, which removed the possibility of the statues being worshiped, he added: “The government considers the Bamiyan statues as an example of a potential major source of income for Afghanistan from international visitors. The Taliban states that Bamiyan shall not be destroyed but protected.”[18] In early 2000, local Taliban authorities asked for UN assistance to rebuild drainage ditches around tops of the alcoves in which the Buddhas were set.[19]

However, Afghanistan's radical clerics began a campaign to crack down on “un-Islamic” segments of Afghan society. The Taliban soon banned all forms of imagery, music and sports, including television, in accordance with what they considered a strict interpretation of Sharia.[20]”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhas_of_Bamyan#Preface_to_2001.2C_under_the_Taliban

(It has been a while since this happened, and my memory isn't quite accurate. :-( )

They began talking about destroying the statue in 1997 (and actually did damage it some) when Bill Clinton was still president. They did some more damage to it in 1998, but didn't actually blow it up until March 2001. That was about 2 months after he left office, but he still had a lot of “pull” in other countries around the world. I do remember him asking them to preserve the statue, but it may have been after leaving office rather than before.

Here is another bit of news about the attempt to destroy the Buddhas prior to 2001. Unfortunately, the link doesn't work.
“DUTY TO PROTECT: Destruction of Afghani art certainly didn't begin with the Taliban's assault on the giant Buddhas. The Society for the Preservation of Afghanistan's Cultural Heritage (SPACH) has been fighting to save artwork in Afghanistan since 1994 (without much luck). “Monuments were being neglected, if not badly damaged by the war, historic sites had been and were still being illegally excavated and, most importantly, the Kabul Museum, which houses an important collection, was being damaged and plundered.” Purabudaya 2000”

A bit of interesting data on the attempt to destroy the Buddhas is found here: “HOW THEY KILLED THE BUDDHAS: “After failing to destroy the 1,700-year-old sandstone statues of Buddha with anti-aircraft and tank fire, the Taliban brought a lorryload of dynamite from Kabul. A Western observer said: ‘They drilled holes into the torsos of the two statues and then placed dynamite charges inside the holes to blow them up’.” The Telegraph (London) 03/12/01” They couldn't accomplish the destruction with anti-aircraft and tank fire.

If Islamists continue to destroy such “blasphemous” pieces of heritage, what will the UN do? Will it issue a seriously written memo? Oh, oh.

I’m torn. Hate the muzzies being their true selves, but I hate the UN and their stupid UN world heritage sites. Nuke ‘em both from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.

A map of the Sahel region showing where Al Qaeda operates (AFP/Graphic)