Al Qaeda and Islamists when they take control: The destruction of architectural treasures in Mali and elsewhere...

As al Qaeda rebels try to take over Mali, there is another war under way...

Great Mosque at Djenne, Mali

Al Qaeda Islamist care a lot about architecture.  So much so that they seem hell bent on blowing up or tearing down any architectural style they disapprove of.  And you thought the New York Times architectural critics have a stick up their ass!

Great Mosque at Djenne, Mali

This Islamic war on the past was well documented in Afghanistan with the blowing up of the ancient Buddhas.
There is vandalism by Islamists in Morocco and Tunisia.
It is also occurring under the cover of civic improvement in Mecca and Medina, with Saudi Wahhabi tearing down century old Sufi buildings because they offended the current puritanism of Wahhabi tastes.  Saudi officials are even waging war on archeology.
The West may be inadvertently helping spread the Wahhabi Winter in places like Syria.

Timbuktu is full of architectural treasures.  Now ignorant jihadi rebels under the direction of Al Qaeda are engaged in destroying mosques and mausoleums they disapprove of in Mali.  The Islamists are especially focused on attacking anything they deem involving idolatry, especially if it is Sufi related.   This destruction is being called a war crime.

Update:
Liberated Mali town tells of horrors of Al Qaeda
A Time of Revenge in Timbuktu...