History of Timbuktu returning from a stay in the capital of the Mali Empire. Timbuktu was still relatively unimportant and Battuta quickly moved on to Gao. At the time both Timbuktu and Gao formed part of the Mali Empire. A century and a half later, in around 1510, Leo Africanus visited Timbuktu. He gave a description of the town in his "Descrittione dell'Africa" which was published in 1550. The original Italian was translated into a number of other languages and the book became widely known in Europe. The earliest surviving local documents are the 17th century chronicles, al-Sadi's "Tarikh al-Sudan" and Ibn al-Mukhtar's
Timbuktu was given to the build of a cultural centre. During a session in June 2009, UNESCO decided to cease its increased monitoring program as it felt sufficient progress had been made to address the initial concerns. Following the takeover of Timbuktu by MNLA and the Islamist group Ansar Dine, it was returned to the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2012. In May 2012, Ansar Dine destroyed a shrine in the city and in June 2012, in the aftermath of the Battle of Gao and Timbuktu, other shrines, including the mausoleum of Sidi Mahmoud, were destroyed when attacked with