Demolition of historical sites called war crime

13 May 2015, 4:20 pm

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The chief of the UN education and culture organization UNESCO says the destruction and looting of archaeological sites in the Middle East must be condemned as a “war crime.”

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova of Bulgaria also tells a conference that opened in Egypt on Wednesday that the theft and destruction of antiquities in the region was a “tactic of war” designed to terrify populations, finance criminal activities and spread hatred.

People observe ancient artifacts at the Iraqi National Museum on March 15, 2015 after its reopening in the wake of the recent destruction of Assyrian archaeological sites by the Islamic State group in Mosul, as they visit the museum in Baghdad. (Photo credit: Karim Kadim, AP)

The two-day conference is being held in response to the destruction of ancient temples and artifacts in Iraq by the extremist Islamic State group as well as the looting and smuggling of antiquities in Iraq, Syria, Egypt and Libya.

A total of 10 Arab nations are represented in the conference.

– AP