Hardline Sunni Salafists Destroy 8,000 Year Old Carvings in Atlas Mts.

[AcesandEights]

This news is a week old and I only just came across it, but I always flip when I see this stuff, like what the Taliban did to those Buddhas years ago. RABAT — Stone carvings in Morocco's High Atlas mountains dating back more than 8,000 years and depicting the sun as a pagan divinity have been destroyed by Salafists, a local rights group said on Wednesday. "These stone carvings of the sun are more than 8,000 years old. They were destroyed several days ago," Aboubakr Anghir, a member of the Amazigh (Berber) League for Human Rights, told AFP. "One of the carvings, called 'the plaque of the sun,' predates the arrival of the Phoenicians in Morocco," Anghir said. "It lies in a well-known archaeological site in the Yakour plain south of Marrakesh, 20 kilometres (12 miles) from Mount Toubkal." "There are several Salafist groups active in the region and it's not the first time these pre-Islamic sites have been attacked. We have sent a message to the ministry of culture, but have not yet received a reply," he added. Salafists, Muslims who adhere to a hardline Sunni interpretation of Islam similar to that practised in Saudi Arabia, which strictly prohibits "idolatry," have enjoyed a surge in strength in Arab Spring countries, benefiting from wider freedom. Late on Monday, one of Tunisia's main Sufi mausoleums was burned down in an overnight arson attack, seemingly the latest in a spate of attacks on unorthodox Sufi shrines by the country's increasingly assertive Salafists. In northern Mali, which is close to Morocco, radical Islamists have destroyed ancient World Heritage shrines they consider idolatrous since seizing control of the region earlier this year.

[Cykotic]

My sister in law is a Muslim and even she thought that the people doing this were twats

[Neil]

Stunning how this backward mindset still exists on the earth 40+ years after a human set foot on the moon... Wonder how long until these cultures join the rest of us in the 21st century?

[Rancid Carcass]

Wonder how long until these cultures join the rest of us in the 21st century? It will be sometime after we first make contact with a planet called Vulcan... I guess there are two types of religious people in the world - those who accept the world the way it is and use it to challenge and strengthen their beliefs, and those who take religious teachings literally and cannot accept anything beyond that. It's these people that have a belief that is so fundamentally weak that they have to lash out at ancient relics, scientific discoveries and people with a different world view for fear of being proven wrong. That's why I always chuckle when I see groups of protestors on the news with their placards threatening anyone who insults their religion. If these people where so sure of their ideologies and that they really do believe that they follow the 'one true faith' then these insults would be meaningless - I guess you really can be blinded by the light! Now where did I put that invisible pink elephant...

[Cykotic]

Now where did I put that invisible pink elephant... oh you mean Leroy? He's gone to the store for more beer and twinkies... he'll be back in a moment.

[Neil]

It will be sometime after we first make contact with a planet called Vulcan... I guess there are two types of religious people in the world - those who accept the world the way it is and use it to challenge and strengthen their beliefs, and those who take religious teachings literally and cannot accept anything beyond that. It's these people that have a belief that is so fundamentally weak that they have to lash out at ancient relics, scientific discoveries and people with a different world view for fear of being proven wrong. That's why I always chuckle when I see groups of protestors on the news with their placards threatening anyone who insults their religion. If these people where so sure of their ideologies and that they really do believe that they follow the 'one true faith' then these insults would be meaningless - I guess you really can be blinded by the light! Now where did I put that invisible pink elephant... More to do with the culture really. ie: You can have Muslim from two different cultures who behave very differently...

[shootemindehead]

You can have Christians that act in different ways too. During the bombing of Baghdad and other towns and cities, many ancient Muslim buildings and artifacts were destroyed too in an unnecessary war started for outrageous lies. I don't see a difference.

[Christopher Jon]

You can have Christians that act in different ways too. During the bombing of Baghdad and other towns and cities, many ancient Muslim buildings and artifacts were destroyed too in an unnecessary war started for outrageous lies. I don't see a difference. There actually is a big difference. Ancient buildings and artifacts unintentionally destroyed during a military conflict vs. hard-core religious nuts purposely destroying ancient artifacts for religious reasons.

[Legion2213]

You can have Christians that act in different ways too. During the bombing of Baghdad and other towns and cities, many ancient Muslim buildings and artifacts were destroyed too in an unnecessary war started for outrageous lies. I don't see a difference. Hmm, really? Well, one act is deliberate targeted destruction, the other is accidental and not the actual objective of the destroyer.

[Mike70]

ah, monotheism in all its idiocy. doesn't matter: jew, muslim, christian. it is all the same piece of shit used car with a different coat of paint on it. the world would do itself a huge favor and rid itself of monotheistic thought. a lot of human suffering would be avoided and lots of important cultural things would still be in existence. i'm an atheist, a nasty one at that and damn proud of it. why? because i am completely incapable of committing asinine actions against other people simply because of what some centuries old, poorly written book has to say about, well, anything. an action like this would never even cross my mind. i have far more important shit to worry about.