The former head of the Islamic police in Mali’s historic city of Timbuktu has been convicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity and forcing hundreds of women into sexual slavery, the BBC reports.
According to prosecutors, Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud led a “reign of terror” in Timbuktu after it was overrun in 2012 by the al-Qaeda-linked Ansar Dine group.
Hassan faced charges of torture, rape, sexual slavery and other inhumane acts, and is also alleged to have helped destroy ancient mausoleums in Timbuktu.
In his role as police chief, Hassan oversaw punishments against residents of the city. ICC prosecutors said there was evidence that women could be punished with lashings on the spot for breaking rules such as not wearing gloves at the market.
The BBC reports that Hassan was handed over to the ICC in 2018 by the Malian authorities, five years after French troops helped liberate Timbuktu from the jihadists.
Ansar Dine was one of several Islamist groups to exploit an ethnic Tuareg uprising to take over cities in northern Mali.
[Photo: ICC]