ISIS Video Purports To Show The Destruction Of The Ancient City Of Nimrud
Video released online purports to show widespread desecration at the ancient Iraqi city of Nimrud.
A video released online Saturday purports to show ISIS militants destroying ancient Assyrian treasures in the Iraqi city of Nimrud.
The militants can be seen using sledgehammers and angle grinders to desecrate stone artifacts.
In March, UNESCO World Heritage Director General Irina Bokova condemned reports that ISIS militants had begun destroying Nimrud.
“This is yet another attack against the Iraqi people, reminding us that nothing is safe from the cultural cleansing underway in the country: it targets human lives, minorities, and is marked by the systematic destruction of humanity’s ancient heritage,” she said.
Nimrud was founded more than 3,300 years ago and was once considered the second capital of the Assyrian empire.
Iraqi workers clean a statue of winged bull at an archeological site in Nimrud in 2001. Karim Sahib / AFP / Getty Images
ISIS deems ancient artifacts un-Islamic idolatry and has destroyed several monuments.
It is also said to plunder antiquities from such sites in order to sell them on the black market.
David Mack is a reporter and weekend editor for BuzzFeed News in New York.
Contact David Mack at david.mack@buzzfeed.com.
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