April 14, 2003
Irreplaceable losses in Baghdad
The human loss of thousands of Iraqi civilians, as well as thousands of Iraqi conscripted soldiers is the most immediate negative result of the invasion and conquest of Iraq. But, an even greater tragedy has occurred in the tragic loss of irreplaceable antiquities, whose preservation apparently is not a primary 'objective' of the coalition.
Museum's treasures left to the mercy of looters :
"US generals reject plea to protect priceless artefacts from vandals
Jonathan Steele in Baghdad
Monday April 14, 2003
The Guardian
US army commanders have rejected a new plea by desperate officials of the Iraq Museum to protect the country's archeological treasures from looters.
Despite worldwide media coverage at the weekend of the waves of vandalism and plunder last week, no tanks or troops were visible there yesterday. "
US blamed for failure to stop sacking of museum:
"US blamed for failure to stop sacking of museum
By Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles and David Keys, Archaeology Correspondent
14 April 2003
The United States was fiercely criticised around the world yesterday for its failure to protect Baghdad's Iraq National Museum where, under the noses of US troops, looters stole or destroyed priceless artefacts up to 7,000 years old.
Not a single pot or display case remained intact, according to witnesses, after a 48-hour rampage at the museum – perhaps the world's greatest repository of Mesopotamian culture. US forces intervened only once, for half an hour, before leaving and allowing the looters to continue."
Pentagon Was Told Of Risk to Museums:
"U.S. Urged to Save Iraq's Historic Artifacts
By Guy Gugliotta
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, April 14, 2003; Page A19
In the months leading up to the Iraq war, U.S. scholars repeatedly urged the Defense Department to protect Iraq's priceless archaeological heritage from looters, and warned specifically that the National Museum of Antiquities was the single most important site in the country.
...
The possibilities are almost infinite. Iraq is the home of ancient Mesopotamia and has a cultural heritage that extends for thousands of years and encompasses the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Parthians, Sassanids and Muslims, to name only the best-known civilizations.
"There are thousands of unique items," said Boston University archaeologist Paul Zimansky. "If somebody walks off with those things, we'll never see them again. It is a disaster of major proportions." "
Posted by Dienekes at April 14, 2003 12:33 AM | PermaLinkWell, it's clear for me why the "WASPean" led forces didn't do anything about looting in Irak, apart of course from the fact they desregard -and ignore- any non anglosaxon culture.
An army of "liberators" whose publicly known objective is american national security (!!!) has to do something to camouflage and favour their real dominance strategy. It has to be able to get the support at large from the uneducated, oppressed and discontempt large masses of Irak.
If not so, the occupators would meet sooner than they could anticipate from these masses the starting of riots against the occupation and their undiscriminated killing of civilians. This wouldn't look right to the world, would it?
And what would be the cleanest, most pragmatic way to achieve this objective? To let them loot anything they want
-including humanity's treasures- with the excuses (according to Rumsfeld) these things belonged to the regime, or that it's the natural reaction of long oppressed people and that the forces are not policemen.
Does this reveal morally the true essence of american style imposed "democracy"? Do "American interests" don't go along with the preservation of Human Culture?
Posted by: Fernando Salas at April 14, 2003 11:53 AM>> led forces didn't do anything about looting in Irak, apart of course from the fact they desregard -and ignore- any non anglosaxon culture.
Power corrupts, that is the sad truth.
>> An army of "liberators" whose publicly known objective is american national security
US will likely establish a democracy in Iraq, but I'm not so sure they will like the democratically elected government. In any case, Baghdad has fallen, and the world is waiting patiently for the evidence for WMD that was the supposed threat that Iraq posed.
>> To let them loot anything they want
-including humanity's treasures- with the excuses (according to Rumsfeld) these things belonged to the regime, or that it's the natural reaction of long oppressed people and that the forces are not policemen.
The interests of the occupying force are clear. First priority is to safeguard American lives. Second priority is to safeguard the flow of oil. Third priority is to safeguard contracts for the "reconstruction" of Iraq for American companies, after the "destruction" of Iraqi property using the weapons made by other American companies. Protecting 7,000-year-old stones must rank pretty low in the overall scheme of things.
Posted by: Dienekes at April 15, 2003 12:16 AM About lootings of Ancient Antiquities just BEFORE they took place please see Human Races Archives (www.racearchives.com/archived/).
On the fourth paragraph of the article "War & Heritage:Is Ancient Irak Being Protected?", it says: "Howerver, many have not regarded their efforts (made by american art collectors) as solely philantropic..."
Will the civilized reconstructors and soul-saviors of Irak profit from this aswell?