London: Islamists in Mali have started destroying remaining mausoleums in the historic city of Timbuktu.
Abou Dardar, a leader of the Islamist group Ansar Dine has pledged that ‘not a single mausoleum will remain in Timbuktu’.
According to the BBC, Islamists in control of northern Mali began earlier this year to pull down shrines that they consider idolatrous.
Tourist official Sane Chirfi said four mausoleums had been razed on Sunday.
According to the report, Timbuktu was a centre of Islamic learning from the 13th to the 17th centuries.
It is a UN World Heritage site with centuries-old shrines to Islamic saints that are revered by Sufi Muslims.
The Salafists of Ansar Dine condemn the veneration of saints, the report said.
(ANI)
First Published: Monday, December 24, 2012, 16:32