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BAMAKO, Mali (AP) – Residents going to pray at a saint's tomb in north Timbuktu say a member of an al-Qaeda-linked group in North Africa attacked and burned a tomb classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Mahamane Cisse and other witnesses said Sunday that a Mauritanian member of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and other members of his group tore off the doors of the tomb and burned some items.Aghaly Yattara says one of the people who protested the destruction of Sidi Mahmoud Ben Amar's tomb on Friday was taken by AQIM and then released.Timbuktu has 333 tombs for holy saints. Sixteen cemeteries and mausoleums there are classified as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.In Mali's vast north, separatist rebels have declared their independence, and militants are trying to impose strict Islamic law.Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.
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