Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, the man who headed the Islamic police in Timbuktu when it was under the control of jihadist militants five years ago has been detained by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Reports say the suspect who is also accused of victimising women and girls by approving their forced marriages to Islamist fighters was handed over to the ICC by authorities in Mali.
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According to reports, the arrest warrant for Mr Al Hassan listed crimes against humanity including “torture, rape and sexual slavery; persecution of the inhabitants of Timbuktu on religious and gender grounds; and other inhumane acts”.
Mr Al Hassan is also alleged to have helped destroy ancient mausoleums in Timbuktu.
He is set to be the second Malian to be tried by the ICC over conflict after Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi pleaded guilty to destroying nine mausoleums and a mosque in Timbuktu at a landmark trial in 2016.
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