(ANSAmed) – ISTANBUL, DECEMBER 3 – A well-known Maltese historian and chairman of the National Book Council, Mark Camilleri, has accused Malta’s Superintendence for Cultural Heritage of attempting to cover-up the island’s Islamic past, as Anadolu Agency reports. Camilleri, who wrote a book challenging the notion that the people of Malta became Christians following Paul’s shipwreck on the island in 60 C.E., made the accusation after the Superintendence refused his request for a list of all archeological objects from the year 800 to 1400 C.E. Arab Muslims, who had conquered and ruled the Mediterranean island between those dates, left a legacy of history and culture which is still found in the Maltese language today, which is considered to be a dialect of Arabic. Infuriated by the decision, Camilleri, who also protests against the absence of Arab heritage at the national archeological museum, called the Superintendence a “propagandistic machine which controls and abuses of historical evidence for religious and ideological ends.” However, Superintendent Anthony Pace brushed off the accusations, saying that the list requested by Camilleri was part of ongoing research of which findings would be published in two years time. Although a survey conducted by daily MaltaToday found that 63% of Maltese people acknowledge their Muslim past, respondents aged between 18 and 34 were the least likely to accept this fact. (ANSAmed).