DJÉNNÉ, Mali: Thousands of Malians have replastered the iconic earthen mosque in the historic city of Djenne during an annual ceremony that helps preserve the World Heritage site.
To the sound of drums and festive music, townsmen on Thursday coated the towering three-minaret mosque with fresh mud plaster.
The annual replastering with “banco” — a mix of earth and water — shields the mosque from harsh weather ahead of the Sahel region’s often violent rainy season.
“This mosque belongs to the whole world,” said Aboubacar Sidiki Djiteye, his face streaked with mud as he joined the “unifying” ritual.
“There’s no bigger event in Djenne than this,” he told AFP.
“Replastering the mosque is a tradition handed down from generation to generation,” said Bayini Yaro, one of the women tasked with carrying water for the plaster mix.
Locals prepared the mix themselves, combining water, earth, rice bran, shea butter and baobab powder — a hallmark of Sahel-Sudanese architecture.
Chief mason Mafoune Djenepo inspected the fresh coating.
“The importance of this mosque is immense. It’s the image on all Malian stamps,” he said.
A blessing ceremony followed the replastering, with Qur’anic verses recited in the mosque courtyard. Participants then shared dates and sweets.
First erected in the 13th century and rebuilt in 1907, the mosque is considered the world’s largest earthen structure, according to the United Nations’ cultural body, UNESCO.
Djenne, home to around 40,000 residents and known for preserving its traditional banco houses, has been on UNESCO’s World Heritage list since 1988.
The site was added to the endangered heritage list in 2016 due to its location in central Mali, where jihadist fighters linked to Al-Qaeda and the Daesh group, as well as ethnic militias and criminal gangs, have waged a violent insurgency since 2012.
Ancient Malian city celebrates annual replastering of mosque
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Ancient Malian city celebrates annual replastering of mosque
- The annual replastering with “banco” — a mix of earth and water — shields the mosque from harsh weather
Trump talks trade with Canada, Mexico leaders at World Cup draw
- Friday’s talks were the first between Trump and Sheinbaum
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump met Friday with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, with the talks partly focused on the future of a North American free trade deal.
The leaders met in Washington on the sidelines of the draw for the 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.
“The three leaders met for approximately 45 minutes,” Carney spokesperson Audrey Champoux said in an email.
“They’ve agreed to keep working together on CUSMA,” she added, using the Canadian acronym for the existing free trade deal between the three countries, which Americans call the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement .
The USMCA deal was struck during Trump’s first term.
Trump has slapped steep tariffs on exports from Canada and Mexico that do not fall under the USMCA, which Washington is seeking to renegotiate next year.
Friday’s talks were the first between Trump and Sheinbaum.
Carney has visited the White House twice since Trump’s return to power, but it will be his first encounter with Trump — except for a brief meeting at a summit in South Korea — since the US leader suspended trade talks in a bizarre row over an anti-tariff ad.
Trump has also threatened further punishment if they fail to curb cross-border migration and drug trafficking — and irked Sheinbaum by saying he would be “OK” with air strikes on Mexico to tackle traffickers.
She has vowed the strikes will never happen.
Canada also was outraged by Trump’s calls earlier this year for it to become the 51st US state.
Carney drew criticism at recent G20 meetings in South Africa when, asked by a reporter when he last spoke to Trump, answered, “Who cares?“
The three countries launched their joint World Cup bid in 2017 during Trump’s first term in the White House.
Trump said Friday that the United States had worked closely with Mexico and Canada over the tournament, adding “the coordination and friendship and relationship has been outstanding.”
