The actions of IS have received a lot of media attention
lately, the world watching in horror as hundreds of thousands of innocent
people in Iraq and Syria are displaced or killed and their homes destroyed by
the extremist Islamic group. In this post, I sum up recent events and address
some of the issues relating to the protection of cultural heritage in the
context of war.
Who are IS?
They are an extremist group, also known as ISIS or ISIL
(which stands for ‘Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham’, the last word being the
translation of the Arabic for ‘the Levant’ or ‘Syria’), originally an al-Qa’ida
group in Iraq (called ‘al-Qa’ida in Iraq’, AQI, or ‘Islamic State in Iraq’,
ISI). The group became involved in the Syrian civil war, and split from
al-Qa’ida in February 2014 (1) over differences in ideology and
strategy (2). IS, which follows hard-line Sunni
Islamic teachings, aims to found a conservative Islamic state: a caliphate,
ruled by a supposed descendent of the prophet Mohammad, the Iraqi Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi. In June 2014, IS captured Mosul, Iraq’s second-biggest city; IS’s
wealth was estimated to have risen to $2 billion with this capture, which
included banks and military supplies (3).
What damage has been caused?
Hundreds of thousands of people have had to flee their homes; thousands
have been killed or injured, tortured or raped. In addition to the loss of life
and cost to human welfare, the cultural heritage of Syria and Iraq has suffered
irreparably. In some cases, this has been collateral damage, but in others, the
destruction of cultural heritage was the specific aim of attacks.
[The shrine containing the tomb of Jonah, before and
after. Image from: www.conflictantiquities.wordpress.com]
But
theology is not their only motive for destruction: the 8th century
B.C. Arslan Tash lion in Raqqa, shattered into pieces, was not a religious
statue. The medieval market of Al-Madina in Aleppo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site,
has been burnt down; the Museum of Mosul was also attacked by IS (6). The destruction is therefore also
politically and ideologically motivated, representing a desire to erase the
history and culture of their opponents, and to demonstrate supremacy over them
by destroying their livelihood. IS have published images and videos of about
50% of the sites they have destroyed, on websites and social media (4).
[The
Raqqa lion being destroyed by IS. Images from:
http//www.apsa2011.com/index.php/en/provinces/ar-raqqah/monuments/816-raqqa-lion-statues-destroyed]
Looting of archaeological sites has also been rife: Apamea
in western Syria, once ‘one of the
largest and best-preserved Roman and Byzantine sites in the world’ and boasting
mosaics and a colonnaded street, has been looted so dramatically that aerial
images of the site resemble photos of the surface of the moon (7).
[Aerial photos of Apamea in July 2011 and in April 2012.
Images from www.chasingaphrodite.com]
Likewise, the Roman-era site at Dura-Europos has suffered irreparable damage by
looting. Dura-Europos previously ‘stood out for its remarkable preservation’ and was a symbol ‘of the
country's diverse, tolerant past’, where Christians, Jews and Romans had lived
side by side (7b);
now it has been destroyed as a result of the actions of an extremist group.
Damage to cultural heritage is a common occurrence in times
of conflict, and one need only look back to the U.S. invasion of Iraq for a
recent example of such damage: in 2003 the Baghdad Museum was looted, and a
military base was built on the ancient archaeological site of Babylon, one of
the seven wonders of the ancient world, archaeological fragments serving to
fill sandbags (8). However, the damage taking place now
is the most ‘sustained, extensive and methodical’ yet seen in the region.
What other sites are at risk?
The Kurdish capital, Erbil, which was previously thought so safe that US
embassy personnel were moved there from Baghdad (9) and which has
served as ‘an enclave for persecuted religious and ethnic groups’(10), is expected
to be the next target of IS (11). Erbil also
happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of the world’s oldest
continuously inhabited sites, having first been settled about 8,000 years ago (10,
12). Archaeological excavations of the site are
difficult due to its continuing habitation, but had started last year. If the
site is destroyed by IS, the loss of knowledge would be disastrous.
[The ancient citadel of Erbil. Image from: www.wikipedia.org]
Thousands of known archaeological sites (to say nothing of
archaeological sites that have not been discovered and recorded by
archaeologists) currently lie within the area that has been taken over by IS (10i, 10ii). Among these sites are Nineveh, Kalhu, Dur Sharrukin and Ashur, which
each once served as the capital of the Assyrian empire. Already, relief
sculptures from the 9th century palace of king Ashurnasirpal at
Kalhu (ancient name ‘Nimrud’) are reported to have been cut with chainsaws to
be exported and sold (10ii).
Why should we care about the damage to cultural heritage
when people are being killed?
Firstly, because the two crimes are linked.
IS is killing its opponents and destroying sites which
conflict with its interpretation of Islam (13). IS is effectively attempting a
genocide of the Shia branch of Islam, and to eradicate any trace of other
faiths from Iraq and Syria: non-Sunni inhabitants of Iraq and Syria have been
and are being treated with horrifying violence.
Raphael Lemkin, the lawyer who coined the term ‘genocide’,
argued that it involves the ‘destruction of essential foundations of the life
of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves’ (14).
These ‘essential foundations’ include cultural sites, objects, and practices.
The ‘destruction of human communities is incomplete without cultural violence’ (15).
Without their cultural heritage, which represents their history, ‘social groups are atomised into
disaffected, soulless individuals’ (15) without a connection to their past (16).
The genocide of Turkish Armenians is a recent example of the
murder and deportation of an ethnic group and the destruction of its cultural
heritage, in this instance at the hands of the Turkish government (note that IS
have also destroyed an Armenian genocide memorial in Syria, 17).
By erasing
‘entire chapters of the country’s past’, IS can hope to ‘radically reshap[e]
its future’ (16). The destruction of the cultural heritage of non-Sunni groups therefore
goes hand in hand with the violence directed against people. The cultural heritage of Iraq and Syria ‘is not a
casualty of war, but a direct target of the ongoing attacks’ by IS (18).
Secondly, because the sale of looted artefacts is funding
IS.
Earlier this month, UNESCO confirmed that profits from
artefacts looted from Syrian and Iraqi archaeological sites are serving to fund
IS (6). ‘The
most prized commodities on the black market include Roman mosaics, Palmyrene
statues, ancient jewelry, medieval manuscripts and prehistoric religious
artifacts, which are slowly making their way into private collections across
the Middle East, Europe and North America’ (17).
Aerial images of ‘pockmarked’ archaeological sites
demonstrate the occurrence of ‘organised, almost industrial-scale looting’: IS
has been ‘allowing and indeed profiting directly from the looting and sale of
antiquities’ (13). Though the income from this may not be
as great as that from seizures of banks or sales of oil, it still amounts to
millions of dollars per year.
The
International Council of Museums has published a Red List of the sorts of
artefacts that might be illegally exported from Syria and Iraq (20), in order to inform border control
officers and anyone buying archaeological artefacts. Any objects in those
categories that appear on the market without a provenance must be presumed
looted: an archaeological artefact from a legal excavation would have
accompanying paperwork stating its findspot and its export documentation.
The
difficulty is the Roman artefacts being looted from Syrian and Iraqi sites such
as Dura-Europos cannot easily be distinguished from Roman artefacts from
anywhere else in the Roman Empire, and it is therefore possible to export them
illegally without detection, especially by producing fake documentation regarding their origins
(20i).
The link
between the sale of looted artefacts and crimes against humanity provides an
imperative for the study of the illicit trade in antiquities and the
prosecution of those who engage in it (21).
Thirdly,
because the destruction of cultural heritage represents an irreparable loss of
knowledge for the whole world.
The area
in which the conflict is taking place is referred to as the ‘cradle of
civilisation’, where archaeologists have found the earliest evidence for features that continue to be vital aspects of modern
life around the world: the domestication of plants and animals, the development
of writing, and the building of cities.
The
Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Romans, Palmyrenes, Sassanians, Umayyads,
Ottomans and others all left traces of their culture in Iraq and/or Syria.
And there
is so much still to discover about these cultures: many sites have
only been surveyed, not excavated, and many remain to be discovered; moreover,
the cultural heritage of Iraq and Syria ‘varies from region to region, period
to period’ (10ii). Each hole in the ground dug by a looter represents irreparable loss of
knowledge, whose significance can never be assessed.
After the
shrine of Jonah was razed, looters are thought to have dug into the
archaeological remains lying under it, which archaeologists had not been able
to excavate and document due to the religious structure built on top (7c). Now they never will.
Fourthly,
because the destruction of cultural heritage will have a lasting effect on the
rebuilding of Syria and Iraq after the conflict.
Just
today (4th October), the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova,
emphasized the role of culture: ‘cultural vitality is synonymous with
innovation and diversity. Culture creates jobs, generates revenues and
stimulates creativity. It is a multifaceted vector of values and identity.
Moreover, culture is a lever that promotes social inclusion and dialogue’ (22).
The loss
of cultural heritage will be a lasting legacy of IS actions in Syria and Iraq.
Cultural
heritage, and in particular the archaeological record, is ‘one of the few glues
that hold [together] multi-ethnic societies’: in a post-conflict context, the
conservation of archaeological sites and research into the past of the land
will serve to unite the people (23).
Moreover,
cultural heritage sites are an ‘economic asset’, and cultural tourism was a
vital part of the economy of Syria and Iraq before the conflict (23i). Once the conflict is over (and
based on the assumption that IS will be defeated), Iraq and Syria will want to
rebuild their economy by encouraging tourists to visit its many beautiful and
ancient secular and religious sites.
Even
once peace and stability return, it will take a long time before tourists feel
that it is safe to visit Syria and Iraq. As a result, those who rely on
tourism, such as tour guides and restaurant owners, will continue to suffer
from lowered incomes, and therefore looting is likely to carry on even once
conflict has ended. Action needs to be taken to ensure that people are able to
feed their families without destroying their cultural heritage. Several
projects (23ii) are already under way: teaching
women to knit, sew and weave so that they can produce and sell items such as
clothing, carpets and blankets; educating women and training them to become
teachers; and more.
In the
words of World Monuments Fund President Bonnie Burnham: ‘People in places under
siege care no less about their heritage than we do as we watch with concern
from the outside. But conflict brings destruction, often on a massive scale,
and people caught in these circumstances are both immediately affected and
powerless to intervene’ (23iii).
Archaeological sites and buildings of cultural significance must be
protected in order to rebuild the economies of Syria and Iraq.
How is Iraqi and Syrian cultural heritage currently being
protected?
Firstly, legal frameworks are in place.
The
cultural heritage of Syria and Iraq is protected by national and international
laws, including the Hague Convention of 1954 (amended in 1999) and the UNESCO
Convention of 1970 (20).
The Hague Convention ‘provides protection for cultural heritage in international law,
prohibiting looting, theft, [and] vandalism’ of cultural heritage (24) both movable and immovable and
calling on parties to undertake, “if necessary”, to “put a stop to” such acts
and to refrain from using cultural property “for purposes which are likely to
expose it to destruction or damage” during armed conflict and ‘from directing
any act of hostility against such property’ (25). The Hague Convention prohibits the
export of cultural property from occupied territories (24).
The art
lawyer Patty Gerstenblith notes that the usefulness of the Hague Convention is
limited by the fact that a waiver of these obligations is available where
“military necessity imperatively requires such a waiver” (25). Nonetheless, the Hague Convention has already proved useful: in the aftermath of the Balkan Wars, Serb leaders were convicted
by the International Criminal Court for targeting cultural monuments as part of
their ethnic cleansing (25). The Hague Convention is considered customary international law and “will
therefore bind not just states but non-state actors such as rebel factions or
secessionist groups,” according to legal expert Zoe Howe (25i). IS can therefore be brought to
justice.
However,
the Hague Convention is not ratified by the United Kingdom, which is the most
significant international power that has not yet signed it (the US having
signed the accord in 2009). This failure has recently been decried, and it is hoped that the UK will
ratify the convention soon (26).
The 1970 UNESCO
Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import,
Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property states that “the export
and transfer of ownership of cultural property under compulsion arising
directly or indirectly from the occupation of a country by a foreign power
shall be regarded as illicit”. Its 127 state parties, which include the United
States, United Kingdom, France, Switzerland and Germany, ‘undertake, at the
request of the State Party of origin, to take appropriate steps to recover and
return any such imported cultural property’. However, ‘this important provision covers
only stolen inventoried objects (objects issuing from an illicit excavation or
stolen from a private home are excluded)’ (26i).
Objects
from illicit excavations are protected under the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention on
Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects, which specifies that ‘illegally
excavated objects are considered to be stolen (and thus fall under the body of law
dealing with stolen objects)’ (26ii). However, the 1995 UNIDROIT
Convention has not been ratified by Syria and Iraq, leaving their
archaeological sites at risk and jeopardizing the nations’ ability to recover
archaeological artefacts from abroad after the conflict.
Secondly,
archaeologists and others are doing what they can to help.
Foreign archaeologists, though unable to work on the ground (27),
are documenting damage to cultural heritage sites from abroad using satellite
images and have set up a website where damage to cultural heritage sites can be
reported anonymously (28). Keeping track of the damage gives hope that
‘artefacts that are lost or damaged may someday be found again or repaired and
restored’ (4), will enable
conservation work to start promptly when it is safe to do so and will help
settle any legal issues that are likely to arise in the future (13).
In addition, ‘organizations including the University of Pennsylvania's Cultural
Heritage Center, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and Heritage for Peace, a
network of volunteers and activists based in Spain, have been holding workshops
[in Turkey] to train Syrian archaeologists, curators, and activists in first
aid for objects and sites’ (27i).
Mosaics can
be protected by hiding them under plastic sheets that are then covered in sand
and then with concrete. During the Lebanese civil war (1975-1991), employees of the Beirut
National Museum protected a Roman sarcophagus in its central hall by building
a concrete box around it (27ii). In Aleppo, work is taking place to
protect the city’s Umayyad mosque: ‘locals have dismantled and moved the
12th-century mihrab to safety; dragged stones from the fallen minaret to a safe
site, so that it may one day be reconstructed; bricked up the shrine to
Zachariah; and sandbagged, cemented and bricked up the 14th-century sundial’ (27iii).
Such work
is hugely dangerous: “We're talking about how you secure objects and
collections when things are falling apart around you. It's kind of a grim
business” (27iv).
Further steps
In August
this year, the UK adopted a resolution prohibiting the import of artefacts from
Syria (29). This is
a laudable act, and one which must be imitated throughout the world.
In 2003,
the Museum of Baghdad was looted. In the aftermath, unprovenienced Mesopotamian
antiquities of precisely the type that was kept in the Museum of Baghdad began
to appear on the antiquities market, including at reputable auction houses. The
UN subsequently banned the trade in unprovenienced Iraqi artefacts.
Doing the
same for Syrian artefacts would make it harder to sell stolen artefacts, put an
end to IS sales of artefacts for cash and weapons, and may protect
archaeological sites from looting. You can sign a petition for UN to ban the
trade in Syrian antiquities here: www.thesyriacampaign.org
Human lives are the priority in this conflict, but the
cultural heritage of Syria and Iraq must also be protected.
Footnotes
1. http://www.vox.com/cards/things-about-isis-you-need-to-know/what-is-isis
2. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/11/isis-too-extreme-al-qaida-terror-jihadi
4. http://gatesofnineveh.wordpress.com/
4i. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/oct/10/regnery-the-destruction-of-syrias-christian-treasu/
5. http://news.artnet.com/art-world/isis-destroying-iraqs-cultural-heritage-one-site-at-a-time-58790
6. http://news.artnet.com/in-brief/unesco-confirms-isis-funding-terrorism-by-selling-artifacts-119588
7. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/05/arts/design/in-syria-and-iraq-trying-to-protect-a-heritage-at-risk.html?_r=3
7b. Simon
James of
the University of Leicester. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140903-syria-antiquities-looting-culture-heritage-archaeology/
8. http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/5/middle-east-heritagearabspring.html
10. http://news.artnet.com/art-world/are-more-monuments-under-threat-from-isis-75383
10ii.
http://www.savingantiquities.org/documenting-damage-interview-dr-simone-muhl/
11. http://www.businessinsider.com/why-kobane-is-not-erbil-2014-10
13. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/ancient-treasures-casualties-in-iraq-and-syria/#.VCOJFwSj68Y.twitter
16. C. Sahner in http://online.wsj.com/articles/syrias-blood-diamonds-1410215215
17. http://news.artnet.com/in-brief/isis-destroy-armenian-genocide-memorial-in-syria-116406
18. C.
Sahner in http://news.artnet.com/art-world/syrias-cultural-artifacts-are-blood-diamonds-for-isis-96814
19. A. Bowman. ‘Transnational Crimes Against
Culture: Looting at Archaeological Sites and the ''Grey'' Market in Antiquities
Blythe’, Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, published online 7 May 2008.
20. http://icom.museum/resources/red-lists-database/
20i. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140903-syria-antiquities-looting-culture-heritage-archaeology/
22 https://en.unesco.org/news/florence-declaration-emphasizes-role-culture-post-2015-development-agenda
23i. John Russell, a State Department
consultant http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140903-syria-antiquities-looting-culture-heritage-archaeology/
23ii. e.g. http://tcf.org/blog/detail/for-syrian-women-refugees-exploitation-is-constant
and
http://blogs.redcross.org.uk/emergencies/2014/10/knitting-sewing-weaving-independent-life/
23iii.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bonnie-burnham/syria-cultural-sites_b_4026129.html
25. P. Gerstenblith, 2009. ‘Archaeology
in the Context of War: Legal Frameworks for Protecting Cultural Heritage during
Armed Conflict’. Archaeologies: Journal of the World Archaeological Congress.
25i. http://www.savingantiquities.org/heritage-crisis-syria-call-temporary-moratorium-trade/
26. http://news.artnet.com/art-world/experts-decry-british-complacency-with-syrian-destruction-64799
26i. http://www.heritageforpeace.org/heritage-for-peace/legal-framework/unesco-convention-1970/
26ii. http://www.heritageforpeace.org/heritage-for-peace/legal-framework/unidroit-convention-on-stolen-or-illegally-exported-cultural-objects/
27. http://news.artnet.com/art-world/islamic-state-drives-last-archaeologists-out-of-middle-east-113841
27i. Emma Cunliffe,
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140903-syria-antiquities-looting-culture-heritage-archaeology/
27iv. Brian Daniels,
University of Pennsylvania.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140903-syria-antiquities-looting-culture-heritage-archaeology/
29. http://www.savingantiquities.org/uk-adopts-resolution-prohibiting-import-antiquities-syria/
and
http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/what-we-do/supporting-museums/cultural-property/export-controls/export-licensing/
