 On 1 July 2012, Islamic extremists of the Ansar Dine (Defenders of Faith) began destroying Timbuktu's cultural treasures shortly after UNESCO placed them on a list of endangered World Heritage sites.Declaring the ancient Muslim shrines "haram", or forbidden in Islam, Ansar Dine set about destroying seven of Timbuktu's sixteen mausolea of ancient Muslim saints, including two tombs at the Djingareyber mosque.Using "hoes, pick-axes and chisels, they hammered away at the two earthen tombs until they were completely destroyed".