ICC Orders $8.4M Reparations for Timbuktu Victims

0:00It's April 28th, from New City to your ears. This is Canada News today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. The International Criminal Court just dropped a major ruling out of the Hague, ordering Al Qaeda-linked leader Al Hassan Agh Abdul Aziz to pay seven. Point two million euros, that's about $8.4 million, in reparations for the tear he oversaw in Timba II, Mali. As head of the Islamic Police, back in 2012, he got convicted last year on charges like torture and religious persecution, landing A, 10-year sentence. He's been declared too broke to pay up himself, so the court's trust fund for victims steps in to cover it for over 65,000 people harmed. This fund, backed mostly by member countries, like Sweden and the Netherlands, rarely gets cash straight from convicts, only once in 20 years. People are feeling the weight of this, especially women and girls hit hardest by the extremists. The money's earmarked for real help, economic aid, education programs, job training, and mental

1:05health support to rebuild shattered lives in those. Communities. Earlier projects show it's working. After another Timbuktu case, the fund fixed up destroyed historic sites. But Mali still locked in a brutal fight against Al Qaeda and ISIS allies, with a massive attack just days ago shaking the region. As these reparations roll out, they signal justice ain't just talk. It's about turning pain into progress amid the chaos.