International Criminal Court investigation in Mali

Situation in the Republic of Mali
The seal of the International Criminal Court
The seal of the International Criminal Court
File no.01/12
Referred byMali
Date referred13 July 2012
Date opened16 January 2013
Incident(s)Northern Mali conflict
CrimesWar crimes:
· Intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion
· Destruction of cultural world heritage in the Malian city of Timbuktu
Status of suspects
Ahmad al-Faqi al-MahdiServed a 7 year sentence
al-Hassan Ag Abdoul AzizConvicted
Iyad Ag GhalyFugitive

The International Criminal Court investigation in Mali or the Situation in the Republic of Mali is an ongoing investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into war crimes and other crimes within the ICC's jurisdiction that are alleged to have occurred during the Northern Mali conflict since January 2012.[1] The investigation was requested by the government of Mali in July 2012.[2][1][3][4] As the first person who pleaded guilty to a charge of the ICC, Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi made a statement expressing remorse and advising others not to commit similar acts.[5]

On 27 September 2016, al-Mahdi was sentenced to nine years in prison for the destruction of cultural world heritage in the Malian city of Timbuktu. At least nine mausoleums and one mosque were destroyed.[6] On 26 June 2024, al-Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz was found guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes.[7]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference ICC_pressrelease_16jan2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference MaliSelfReferral was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference FIDH_AMDH_welcome_ICC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference AI_welcomes_ICC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Calamur, Krishnadev (2016-08-22). "Repenting for the Cultural Destruction of Timbuktu". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
  6. ^ Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi: The vandal of Timbuktu, BBC News (September 27, 2016).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference ICC_alHassan_conviction_20240626 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).