Experts shocked by damage inside Palmyra’s museum

[Calista241]

Source: Daily Star (Lebanon)

Syrian antiquities experts expressed shock Monday at the destruction Daesh (ISIS) wrought inside Palmyra’s museum, where scores of artifacts were smashed before troops drove the extremists out of the historic town. Syria’s head of antiquities and museums Maamoun Abdel-Karim, said he would go to Palmyra once bomb squads finish removing explosives planted by the militants before they lost the town.

The recapture of Palmyra by Syrian government forces Sunday was an important victory over Daesh fighters who had waged a 10-month reign of terror there. It also marked the first major defeat for the militant group since an international agreement to battle terrorism in the fractured nation took effect last year.

During their rule of Palmyra, the militants demolished some of its best-known artifacts and monuments, including two large temples dating back more than 1,800 years and a Roman triumphal archway. The sprawling outdoor site was one of Syria’s main tourist attractions before the civil war.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2016/Mar-29/344469-experts-shocked-by-damage-inside-palmyras-museum.ashx

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So very sad.

[Angry Dragon]

1. ............

[Codeine]

2. Nile wrote a song about this shit.

[polly7]

3. The same is happening with Yemen's proud heritage sites with the Saudi/U.S. Weapons supplied

war-crimes and attacks.

What will be left of the ME when all of this horror finally ends?

It's very, very sad.

[Zira]

4. He is an educated man looking at the work of the severely uneducatated and radicalized.

It's not just Isis that will do this. Any misdirected fundy will pull the same thing. Reminds me, black lives matter got another window smashed in with a brick in one of their offices in NY yesterday. Easter and some hater does that...

I'm very sad for the antiquities loss in this story. Hitler was just educated enough to claim the artificats in the museums where ever the Nazis went instead of destroy them. Sadly the mass bombings by the allies destroyed so many. And, I will argue it was part of pushing back true evil so the allies bombing was necessary.
I hope the House of Saud who has already been traced to funding ISIS - and now ISIS has uniforms and military vehicles - some bought in the US, and professional soldier weapons, choke on this. Because they are educated enough to know how bad this is, and yet they still fund it.

[MisterP]

9. China's Cultural Revolution, too

[Laf.La.Dem.]

5. Super sad!

[Gomez163]

6. Barbarians

[leftyladyfrommo]

7. This is so awful.

There isn't going to be a Middle East left. Just a pile of rubble where once vibrant cities used to be.

It's just all going to be a vast wasteland with a hot, dry wind blowing through.

[yardwork]

8. Civilization began in the Middle East. We are destroying our earliest history.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

10. We?

[GummyBearz]

13. I was close to posting a similar comment

But I just didn't want to deal with the obvious head ache of the "Bush (ie. 'we' as in the west) created ISIS" retort, and then be forced to defend Bush and point out he didn't order the destruction of the antiquities, only to get countered by other things he did do, and then spend the evening face palming myself.

You are a brave one sir.

[Marbgd1]

11. History Tailgates

I remember back in the 90's in Afghanistan, the ascendant Taliban dispatched resources to demolish the cliff carvings of Buddha at an eastern pass. Over a thousand years old, and just gone. Dismal example of hopelessly dark ignorance.

Someone once said that Fundamentalism is the universal enemy of Civilization. We have seen much of that, likely more coming.

Cheers.

[ErikJ]

12. Luckily the archaeologists should be able to reconstruct them.

Someday when the threat is gone. Most ancient monuments were pieced back together long after destroyed by barbarians.

[romanic]

14. True.

But it will take time; years, decades even.

[Sunlei]

15. Syria's tourist industry is gone. Will the 2,000 families who lived around Palmyra return?

Or are they all dead in their crushed homes, ran away, run off as refugees to other countries?

Assad is now free to build new homes/farms- move in new 'Homeowners' to Palmyra land?

[Xolodno]

16. Iran has been buying up land in Syria...

...and is already getting construction firms ready.

http://learningenglish.voanews.com/content/iranians-buying-up-land-war-torn-syria/3252852.html

No doubt, another reason why they were able to come to a "Nuclear Deal"....sanctions being lifted allows them to obtain the resources they will need in rebuilding Syria.

And another reason why Turkey, Israel and the Saudi's are pissed. Not only will they fail to get rid of once was just an ally of Iran, but now Assad will owe them heavily and with Iran literally taking control of some parts. Making it impossible for the foreseeable future to unseat them in the area.

It will be interesting to see how long the current king in Saudi Arabia is going to last. With the boondogle in Syria and Yemen looking like its going to split into two again....then with oil prices being what they are and having to negotiate with Iran's and Syria's backer (Russia) for "price stability" on oil. And the US has clearly telegraphed that its not going to get heavily involved in another Mid-East mess, particularly when it comes to countries that bite the hand that feeds them.

[Sunlei]

17. Russia is ally of Syria & Iran.I guess the millions who lost homes & fled Syria are gone for good.

Have a feeling Russia will ramp up & target Turkey next. That country is in the way for them.

[Xolodno]

18. Doubt it.

Turkey's leader is already doing a bang up job of making a mess of things within his country, so why get in the way? And he does a fantastic job of pissing off his NATO ally Greece.

Putin will likely pivot back to Ukraine and finish implementing the Minsk agreement. He (and some other European Nations) want the sanctions lifted or in transition of being lifted.

Ukraine's current government is imploding and proving to the West they can't get their act together. Yats, our "backed guy" doesn't appear he's going to last much longer. No one is going to stick their neck out for them either. Where they go from here, who knows. But after all is said and done, I would expect eastern Ukraine to be an autonomous zone that Kiev has little control over....and later down the road, the debt Ukraine owes to Russia will be canceled with recognition that Crimea is now returned to Russia.

[brooklynite]

19. I was in Palmyra two weeks before the protests started that led to the Civil War...

...hard to believe the artifacts and buildings we saw are gone.