UN SG calls for increased efforts to protect cultural treasures in combat zones News
UN SG calls for increased efforts to protect cultural treasures in combat zones

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official website] on Thursday called on [press release] the international community to intensify its efforts to protect cultural treasures against enemy combatants in regions devastated by conflict. Ban specifically directed attention to attacks on cultural heritage sites in the Middle East, North Africa, Yemen and Mali among others, and termed such kinds of attacks “war crimes.” The UN has been making its own independent efforts to restore and rebuild damaged sites. In Timbuktu, a city known for its rich history and cultural heritage sites, UNESCO [official website] helped rebuild 14 mausoleums and in the process recovered hundreds of thousands of ancient manuscripts. Pointing out that “Combatants that attack cultural treasures want to damage more than artefacts—they aim to tear at the fabric of societies,” Ban stated: “Today, I call on the international community to intensify the global response to attacks on cultural heritage. We have a strong legal basis that we must apply through action to protect treasures and end illicit trafficking. When we ‘Unite for Heritage,’ we will advance our broader campaign for a more just, peaceful and sustainable future.”

Last month the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] opened its first trial [JURIST report] for the destruction of historical and religious monuments. Malian Justice Minister Malick Coulibaly had said in July 2012 that he would ask [JURIST report] the ICC to open an investigation into the destruction of Timbuktu’s mausoleums. Minister Coulibaly’s announcement came after ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda told reporters [JURIST report] that attacks by Islamist rebels on religious monuments in Mali would not be tolerated and destruction of tombs of ancient Muslim saints in Timbuktu likely amounted to war crimes. Conflicts in Timbuktu took place against a background of significant domestic turmoil, as Malian soldiers took control of the government and suspended the constitution in March of that year, leading to what Amnesty International characterized as the nation’s worst human rights crisis [JURIST reports] since it gained independence in 1960.