In the modern West, an iconoclast is someone who criticizes cherished beliefs. The people we call iconoclasts deal in nothing more dangerous than opinion. But in regions dominated by Islamists that term becomes painfully literal.
It means breaking icons — destroying sculpture and desecrating tombs for the purpose of religious purity. It means gangs of thugs with axes and dynamite and the need to impose their beliefs on others.
This week the world learned that iconoclasm has found a new home in the wretched African state of Mali. A landlocked, geographically misshapen nation of 14.5 million, Mali has borders with seven other countries. At the moment, Malian refugees are crossing three of those borders (Mauritania’s, Niger’s and Burkina Faso’s) to escape the results of the Islamist rebellion that overturned their national government in March.
The dominant rebels belong to Ansar Dine, which means “Defenders of the Faith.” They are Sunnis allied with al-Qaeda. They now control northern Mali and they have put the destruction of graves and monuments at the top of their agenda.
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There is so little surviving from Africa’s known empires (which only feed misconceptions about the continent). How disappointing it is to see so many African nations do absolutely nothing while malicious insurgents destroy one of Africa’s greatest historical treasures. Italy and Greece would never allow similar destruction. Even Egypt guards its history carefully.
Nigeria is busy with its own extremists, but why can’t the Hutu mercenaries do something?
Good question Cy. I suspect its because no one will pay them. Unfortunately!
I have much stronger feelings about what these scum are doing than mere disappointment. I was angered when they blew the ancient Buddist statues to smithereens in Afghanistan and I’m plenty angered about this latest atrocity. IMO viewing these Islamist subhumans as being merely “malicious ” is about as understating their pure evil as calling the Nazi death camps health care centres.