ICC Sentences Guilty Of Radical Mali For Humanitarian Crimes In Timbuktu

JAKARTA - The judge at the International Criminal Court (ICC) convicted a Mali radical of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

In a summary of his ruling, the judge said Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz played an important role in the Islamist group Ansar Dine, which controlled the city on the outskirts of the Sahara desert in 2012 and tried to apply Islamic sharia law.

Local residents testified he was considered a key player in the Islamic police who could issue an order and police officers would carry it out.

"Al Hassan has been found guilty based on the majority decision on war crimes and crimes against humanity, including torture, cruel treatment and insults to personal dignity, for publicly condemning 13 members of society" in Timbuktu, Chief Judge Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua said.

Al Hassan pleaded not guilty to all charges, but did not deny he was a member of Ansar Dine. His lawyer believes his client is trying to maintain order in a chaotic situation after the rebels took over Timbuktu.

Prosecutors have charged Al Hassan with a number of gender-based crimes, saying Islamic police terrorized women in Timbuktu, who were subjected to rape, forced marriage, and sexual slavery.

Although the judge said rape and forced marriage did occur in Timbuktu, they argued Al Hassan was not responsible for the crime.

The prosecutor had 30 days since the verdict was handed down to file an appeal.

The sentence against Al Hassan will be determined later after a series of subsequent trials. The ICC can impose a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.