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Timbuktu's Famed Manuscripts Escaped Al-Qaida but the Threat Remains
Most manuscripts smuggled to Bamako 13 years ago have been digitised and returned to Timbuktu, but insecurity and financial pressures risk some being lost or sold, officials say.
- After extensive digitisation, the Ahmed Baba Institute of Higher Islamic Studies and Research returned 28,000 manuscripts safely to Timbuktu, northern Mali, in August following local leaders' requests.
- When extremists seized Timbuktu, staff and families smuggled tens of thousands of manuscripts south to Bamako, while militants destroyed more than 4,000 manuscripts during the 2012 occupation.
- Inside the collections, manuscripts range from medical recipes to astronomical notes, while private libraries in Timbuktu hold an estimated 377,000 manuscripts, Diagayet� said.
- As conservation continues, security limits outside experts and slows preservation work, while the Ahmed Baba Institute trains new manuscript specialists amid attacks by armed groups linked to al-Qaida.
- Financial strain on families who hold private manuscript libraries raises fears of sales even as Timbuktu residents preparing for Mawlid al-Nabi link the texts to cultural identity.
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Associated Press News+13 Reposted by 13 other sources
Timbuktu's famed manuscripts escaped al-Qaida but the threat remains
Residents of the West African city of Timbuktu smuggled out tens of thousands of priceless manuscripts over a decade ago as al-Qaida-linked extremists swept into this part of Mali.
·United States
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources15
Leaning Left9Leaning Right2Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution64% Left
Bias Distribution
- 64% of the sources lean Left
64% Left
L 64%
C 22%
14%
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