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| U.N. Resolves to Combat Plundering of Antiquities by ISIS | U.N. Resolves to Combat Plundering of Antiquities by ISIS |
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| Increasingly frustrated over the Islamic State’s brazen pillaging and trafficking of artifacts in the Middle East, all members of the United Nations agreed on Thursday to take new steps intended to thwart and prosecute antiquities smugglers, ensure the return of plundered ancient treasures and counter what diplomats described as “cultural cleansing,” a new tactic of war to spread hatred and erase the heritage of civilizations. | Increasingly frustrated over the Islamic State’s brazen pillaging and trafficking of artifacts in the Middle East, all members of the United Nations agreed on Thursday to take new steps intended to thwart and prosecute antiquities smugglers, ensure the return of plundered ancient treasures and counter what diplomats described as “cultural cleansing,” a new tactic of war to spread hatred and erase the heritage of civilizations. |
| The resolution adopted unanimously by the 193-nation General Assembly was focused on the threat to Iraq. But it amounted to the broadest international condemnation so far to the cultural destruction and vandalism wrought by the fighters of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, ISIL and Daesh, who have videotaped themselves using bulldozers, explosives and sledgehammers on some of the most prized archaeological sites in the world. | The resolution adopted unanimously by the 193-nation General Assembly was focused on the threat to Iraq. But it amounted to the broadest international condemnation so far to the cultural destruction and vandalism wrought by the fighters of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, ISIL and Daesh, who have videotaped themselves using bulldozers, explosives and sledgehammers on some of the most prized archaeological sites in the world. |
| So far all the sites have been in or near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, which ISIS seized last year, but the group’s invasion a week ago of the storied Syrian city of Palmyra, known for its ancient ruins, raised new alarms. | So far all the sites have been in or near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, which ISIS seized last year, but the group’s invasion a week ago of the storied Syrian city of Palmyra, known for its ancient ruins, raised new alarms. |
| Iraqi officials, who were major sponsors of the resolution, have said that ISIS militants seek to sell what they cannot destroy, and the country’s United Nations ambassador, Mohamed Ali Alhakim, has said the extremist group earns as much as $100 million annually from antiquities trading. Although the origin of that figure is unclear, international police officials have said that the looting of antiquities in war-ravaged and unstable countries is a lucrative business. | |
| Jan Eliasson, the deputy secretary general, said the resolution was a reaction to “a form of violent extremism that seeks to destroy the present, past and future of human civilization.” The destruction was all the more poignant, he said, because it has been happening in Iraq, “the cradle of Mesopotamian civilization.” | Jan Eliasson, the deputy secretary general, said the resolution was a reaction to “a form of violent extremism that seeks to destroy the present, past and future of human civilization.” The destruction was all the more poignant, he said, because it has been happening in Iraq, “the cradle of Mesopotamian civilization.” |
| The resolution is nonbinding, meaning it does not have the enforcement power of a Security Council resolution. Nonetheless, Irina Bokova, the director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the agency responsible for safeguarding cultural heritage sites, told reporters at a news conference that the unanimous support for the measure represented “a turning point” in a global determination to combat the destruction. “Cultural cleansing is a new phenomenon,” she said. “It is emerging as a new threat to security of people, security in the Middle East.” | The resolution is nonbinding, meaning it does not have the enforcement power of a Security Council resolution. Nonetheless, Irina Bokova, the director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the agency responsible for safeguarding cultural heritage sites, told reporters at a news conference that the unanimous support for the measure represented “a turning point” in a global determination to combat the destruction. “Cultural cleansing is a new phenomenon,” she said. “It is emerging as a new threat to security of people, security in the Middle East.” |
| Mr. Alhakim, the Iraqi ambassador, described the resolution as “a first step, not the end,” and exhorted other member states to follow through on its provisions, which include a set of measures to end the destruction and looting of artifacts. He said the resolution “will not allow dealers and middle men to trade — this is against the law.” | |
| The Islamic State has called the destruction a justified action consistent with its version of strict adherence to Islamic law and its repudiation of idol worship. But Islamic religious leaders have joined others throughout the world in condemning the destruction as an atrocity. | The Islamic State has called the destruction a justified action consistent with its version of strict adherence to Islamic law and its repudiation of idol worship. But Islamic religious leaders have joined others throughout the world in condemning the destruction as an atrocity. |
| The General Assembly resolution came more than three months after the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution, 2199, aiming to prevent the Islamic State and other extremist groups from profiting through illicit trade in oil, antiquities smuggling and ransom for hostages. Yet that measure appeared to do nothing to dissuade Islamic State militants from vandalizing archaeological sites in Iraq. | The General Assembly resolution came more than three months after the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution, 2199, aiming to prevent the Islamic State and other extremist groups from profiting through illicit trade in oil, antiquities smuggling and ransom for hostages. Yet that measure appeared to do nothing to dissuade Islamic State militants from vandalizing archaeological sites in Iraq. |
| The group released a video in April purporting to show its attack in March on the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud, a Unesco World Heritage Site. The militants also released a video purporting to show an attack on Hatra, a 2,000-year-old city in northern Iraq. | The group released a video in April purporting to show its attack in March on the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud, a Unesco World Heritage Site. The militants also released a video purporting to show an attack on Hatra, a 2,000-year-old city in northern Iraq. |
| Ms. Bokova said the Security Council resolution had nonetheless helped create the basis for stronger policing of illicit trafficking in Iraqi artifacts, and “now our efforts are supported by adoption of this resolution.” On Monday, at the Louvre in Paris, she said, Unesco and the International Council of Museums will announce an updated list of objects on an antiquities blacklist, which means they “should not be exported or traded from Iraq.” | Ms. Bokova said the Security Council resolution had nonetheless helped create the basis for stronger policing of illicit trafficking in Iraqi artifacts, and “now our efforts are supported by adoption of this resolution.” On Monday, at the Louvre in Paris, she said, Unesco and the International Council of Museums will announce an updated list of objects on an antiquities blacklist, which means they “should not be exported or traded from Iraq.” |