THE HAGUE, Netherlands (CN) — Prosecutors called on the International Criminal Court Wednesday to sentence the former head of the Islamic police force in Timbuktu to 22 years in prison, while his lawyers said their client should receive time served.
In June, the court convicted 47-year-old Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud of war crimes and crimes against humanity for mistreating prisoners and religious persecution. Judges heard arguments from prosecutors, defense lawyers and representatives of victims over the appropriate punishment.
“Timbuktu was occupied, disfigured and persecuted over the course of a long, brutal and methodical sequence of repression,” prosecution lawyer Gilles Dutertre told the three-judge panel.
Al Hassan was convicted of eight charges, and acquitted of five, by The Hague-based court earlier this year. He served as the de facto leader of the police force in the ancient city, implementing strict religious rules after large parts of Mali fell to Islamic separatist groups following a 2012 coup. A French-led military force ultimately forced them from power in 2013.
The judge stressed that the conviction was not a condemnation of Islamic law, but rather of the crimes committed by Ansar Dine, an Islamic extremist group with links to al-Qaida.
"The inhabitants had no other choice but to adapt their lives and lifestyles to conform to the interpretation of Islamic Sharia law ... imposed on them by the force of arms," Presiding Judge Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua said when reading out the verdict.
During Wednesday’s hearing, the prosecution outlined the harsh punishments meted out by Al Hassan and his fellow police officers. Dutertre described the “agony” of a 14-year-old girl who was lashed by Al Hassan. A video of the incident was shown during the trial.
Al Hassan wore a stark white tagelmust, the traditional head covering for Tuareg men, and a white robe, and listened to the arguments via a headset with simultaneous translation.
The lawyers representing the more than 2,000 participating victims stressed the fear their clients have of Al Hassan returning to Timbuktu.
“He’s a leader and if he returns tomorrow, he will have followers who are ready to follow him. And he could still build up the same group around him,” Boubacar Maiga argued, speaking via videolink from Mali.
Al Hassan’s defense is asking for time served. He has already spent more than six years in ICC custody while the trial was underway. He pleaded not guilty to all of the charges when the trial opened in 2020.
“He joined Ansar Dine to protect his family and protect the people in Timbuktu,” defense lawyer Melinda Taylor said.
According to Taylor, Al Hassan is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of torture at the hands of Malian authorities, who handed him over to the ICC in 2018.
Cities in the western African country, including Timbuktu, were overrun by separatists, who in turn succumbed to Islamist groups that enforced strict religious rules, including banning music, forcing women to wear headscarves and destroying non-Muslim religious sites. The groups were forced out by French troops in 2013.
The French withdrew in 2021, following a series of coups. The current government of Assimi Goïta has brought in Russian mercenary forces to police the population.
Another man, Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, pleaded guilty before the court in 2016 for destroying cultural sites and was sentenced to nine years in prison.
A decision on sentencing is expected by the end of the year.
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