BBC News
A suspected Islamist militant accused of destroying cultural sites in Timbuktu is due to appear before the International Criminal Court (ICC), in the first case of its kind.
Ahmad al Faqi al-Mahdi is suspected of war crimes over the destruction of nine mausoleums and a mosque in the ancient Malian city in 2012.
He was handed over by Niger after the ICC issued a warrant for his arrest.
Islamists occupied the city until they were ousted by French forces in 2013.
In a statement, the ICC said the suspect would be informed of the charges against him during Wednesday's initial hearing. The judge would also verify the suspect's identity and the language in which he would be able to follow the proceedings.
The ICC says this is the first case to be brought before the court "concerning the destruction of buildings dedicated to religion and historical monuments".
Treasures of Timbuktu
AP- Timbuktu was a centre of Islamic learning from the 13th to the 17th Centuries
- 700,000 manuscripts had survived in public libraries and private collections
- Books on religion, law, literature and science
- Added to Unesco world heritage list in 1988 for its three mosques and 16 cemeteries and mausoleums
- They played a major role in spreading Islam in West Africa; the oldest dates from 1329
- Islamists destroyed mausoleums after seizing the city in April 2012
Mr Faqi, who was born about 100km (60 miles) west of Timbuktu, is suspected of being a member of Ansar Dine - an al-Qaeda-linked group that held much of northern Mali in 2012.
He is alleged to have been head of the Hesbah - or what some call the 'Manners' Brigade' - which enforced strict Islamist law in Timbuktu during the unrest, and of being involved with and executing decisions made by the so-called Islamic Court of Timbuktu.
During their occupation, the militants vandalised and destroyed mosques and mausoleums, and burnt tens of thousands of ancient manuscripts.
The city - which is listed as a World Heritage Site by Unesco - was considered the centre of Islamic learning from the 13th to the 17th Centuries.
At one time it counted nearly 200 schools and universities that attracted thousands of students from across the Muslim world.
AP
Image caption
The mausoleums took a year to be rebuilt by local stone masons using traditional techniques
The mausoleums were shrines to Timbuktu's founding fathers, who had been venerated as saints by most of the city's inhabitants.
But this practice is considered blasphemous by fundamentalists.
Earlier this year, 14 mausoleums were rebuilt by local stone masons using traditional techniques.
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