By Wassim Bassem for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq is a great mine of antiquities, with around 13,000 historical and archaeological sites. But today, they lack protection in the absence of law and the deteriorating security conditions in the […]
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The UN is warning that Iraq's ancient heritage could be lost forever. Thousands of artefacts have been looted and destroyed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group. Many were […]
The British Museum is embarking on a programme of co-operation with colleagues in Iraq made possible with £3 million grant from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). This will enable the Museum to deliver a programme of in-depth and specialized training to establish a dedicated corps of Iraqi heritage professionals, fully skilled to […]
By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The current situation of archaeological sites in Iraq is saddening. These sites are neglected, abandoned, lack organized protection, and are covered by sand and exposed to tampering by modernists and thieves. Al-Monitor visited the […]
By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. A British archaeological team from the Field Museum and Oxford University conducted excavations between 1923 and 1929 in Kish City, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad. Since then, no other excavations have been […]
The FBI is alerting art collectors and dealers to be particularly careful trading Near Eastern antiquities, warning that artifacts plundered by terrorist organizations such as ISIL are entering the marketplace. “We now have credible reports that U.S. persons have been offered cultural property that appears to have been removed from Syria and Iraq recently,” said […]
By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. At the beginning of February, a British archaeological excavation mission unveiled at the ruins of Ur a large trade center that is the oldest in the world, going back to the Old Babylonian period […]
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq has recovered hundreds of cultural artefacts that have been seized by international customs agents since 2003. Having been looted from Iraq, many of these pieces come from areas that are now under […]
The United Nations General Assembly today expressed outrage that attacks on Iraq’s cultural heritage are being used as a tactic of war to spread terror and hatred, “a new phenomenon,” the head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) labelled as a form of “cultural cleansing” threatening the people and security in the […]
By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The ruins of the city of Babil, some 56 miles south of Baghdad, flourished as the ancient Mesopotamian capital of Babylon, founded in the 19th century BC. Since that time, the city has suffered […]
The United Nations agency mandated with protecting heritage sites worldwide today denounced further destruction at the archaeological site of Nimrud in Iraq, calling the deliberate damage of culture a "war crime" and pledging to do everything possible to fight it. "I condemn this mad, destructive act that accentuates the horror of the situation. It confirms […]
New UNESCO project launched in Baghdad to protect Iraqi cultural heritage "Today, we show our solidarity in the face of unprecedented cultural cleansing, cultural eradication and cultural looting ... And we pledge our commitment to do everything we can to halt this cultural cleansing”, said UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova, at the launch of the new […]
