AMSTERDAM, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) ruled on Thursday that a former Islamist rebel who was jailed for wrecking holy sites in Timbuktu was liable for damages of 2.7 million euros ($3.2 million). The court also ordered Al Mahdi to pay the symbolic sum of one euro ($1.17) to Mali and one euro to the international community via UNESCO, which is responsible for World Heritage site cultural listings. Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi was convicted by the court last year for overseeing the destruction of nine mausoleums and a mosque door with pickaxes and bulldozers in the ancient city of Timbuktu, when extremists briefly seized control of northern Mali in 2012. Currently serving nine years in prison, Mahdi's case is the first time someone has been convicted for cultural destruction by the ICC and pave for the way for further prosecutions related to the demolition of historic sites, such as by the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) in Palmyra and Mosul. At previous hearings, Al Mahdi pleaded guilty and expressed remorse for his role in leading the destruction, urged Muslims around the world not to commit similar acts and was sentenced to nine years in prison. (It) destroys part of humanity’s shared memory and collective consciousness, and renders humanity unable to transmit its values and knowledge to future generations.”

This story corrects that Al-Mahdi was sentenced to nine years in prison previously, not Thursday. The International Criminal Court in the Netherlands today ruled that Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, a onetime member of the al-Qaeda-linked Ansar Dine group, must pay for damage to the buildings, economic losses and moral harm to victims.
The International Criminal Court has ruled that Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi is liable for about € 2.7 million in personal damages for the destruction of Timbuktu's heritage sites, and that the victims (including Mali itself and the international community) be paid "individual, collective, and symbolic" reparations. The Trust Fund for Victims is to decide until 16 February 2018 how the amount will be paid (the Court has also recognized that the penniless al-Mahdi would be unable to pay).