Syria: 15,000 antiquities at risk in rebel-run Idlib

About 15,000 antiquities currently locked away in Idlib safes are at risk of getting sold on the black market, Syrian head of antiquities and museums Maamoun Abdulkarim told Reuters on Friday.

Syrian rebel groups including al-Nusra Front, with an alliance, took control of the provincial city this week. Abdulkarim said he has concerns the ancient valuables in the city would be smuggled and sold across the border to Turkey, allowing Syria to lose the rich history provided in the items.

“What has happened in Idlib is a disaster,” Abdulkarim said. “The worst catastrophe that has happened until now against the culture of Syria.”

The country is home to six UNESCO World Heritage sites, four of which have been used for military purposes, the UN said. Syria estimated that 1,500 antiquities from Raqqa and northern Damascus have already been smuggled and sold. Raqqa was the first provincial capital to have been taken by opposition fighters when Daesh (ISIS) took control of the territory.

The UN Security Council passed a resolution last month to ban all trade in antiquities from the war-torn country, in efforts to strangle Daesh’s finances. The extremist group was one to profit from smuggling Syria’s works of art.