"Set near the Malian city of its title but filmed mostly in
Mauritania for safety reasons (it's Mauritania's first ever
Oscar nominee), Timbuktu is based on events that took
place in 2012, when jihadi fighters, including some
linked to al-Qaida, took over a wide swath of northern
Mali, imposing their harsh interpretation of Islamic law.
The militants were eventually pushed back with the help
of a French military intervention in early 2013.
There's little discussion of these
..."
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2015/02/oscar_nominated_film_timbuktu_and_its_treatment_of_terrorism.html
