CNN —The International Criminal Court on Wednesday convicted an al Qaeda-linked leader of crimes against humanity and war crimes that took place in Timbuktu, northern Mali. Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, who was a senior member of the Islamic Police, was recruited by al Qaeda leaders, the ICC said in a statement. Al Hassan was convicted by majority of directly committing, contributing to, or aiding and abetting crimes against humanity of torture and war crimes of torture and outrages upon personal dignity, the ICC confirmed. Al Hassan will remain in detention until he is sentenced in a separate hearing. Following a 2012 coup in Mali, Islamic extremists, some with ties to al Qaeda, capitalized on the country’s instability.

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Persons: al, Al Hassan Ag, Aziz, Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, Ansar Dine, Al Hassan Organizations: CNN, Islamic Police, ICC, United Nations Locations: al Qaeda, Timbuktu, Mali, Qaeda, Dutch, The Hague