Syrian regime ‘bombs UNESCO world heritage site’

Government helicoptor was reportedly targeting rebels in Busra Sham, classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its historic citadel, ruins and well-preserved Roman theatre

The ancient roman theatre in Bosra (file photo) Photo: Rex Features

The Syrian regime has bombed an anciet castle listed by UNESCO as a world heritage site as it tried to root out rebel fighters who recently captured the town, according to reports.

Government helicopters are thought to have been targeting the southern Syriantown of Busra Sham, classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its historic citadel, ruins and well-preserved Roman theatre. It was once the capital of the Roman province of Arabia and a stopover on caravan routes to Mecca.

Photographs shared on activists’ social media pages purport to show significant damage to pillars inside the castle.

Photographs shared on activists’ social media pages purported to show significant damage to pillars inside the castle

“Parts of an ancient citadel in southern Syria, including its uniquely preserved 2nd century Roman theatre, were damaged on Tuesday, when Syrian regime helicopters bombed the archaeological site,” the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

“Bosra al-Sham’s archaeological citadel has seen destruction, material damage and cracking in the western actors’ resting place and the wastewater disposal network,” the monitoring NGO added.

The town has been in the hands of President Assad’s troops throughout the four-year-old conflict and was considered to be a stronghold of pro-government forces in the southern province of Daraa.

Syrian rebels on Wednesday seized an ancient town near the Jordan border that is a key government stronghold, ousting Syrian soldiers and allied militiamen from the region after four days of intense battles, opposition activists and rebels said.

Much of Syria’s protected ruins have been destroyed in the five years of civil war.

Earlier this year, Islamic State fighters demolished the 2,000-year-old Arch of Triumph in Syria’s ancient city of Palmyra, as the extremist group continued its campaign of destruction at the UNESCO World Heritage site.

Since rushing to power across parts of Syria and Iraq last year, Isil have tried to turn back the clock on Syrian and Iraqi history, systematically erasing signs of their pluralistic ancient heritage.

Under Isil’s puritanical brand of Islam, the preservation of ancient artefacts and monuments is viewed as a form of idolatry.

The jihadists have already released carefully staged videos showing the piece-by-piece destruction of some of Palmyra’s most famous monuments. Once popular visitor sites, the temples of Bel and Baalshamin were rigged with explosives.

The town has been in the hands of President Bashar al-Assad’s troops throughout the four-year-old conflicPalmyra’s custodian has also been killed. 82-year old Khaled al-Asaad was beheaded in August, apparently after questioning over the whereabouts of treasures that had been hidden as Isil advanced on the city.

Busra Sham’s capture is a strategic gain because of its geographical location as well. Busra Sham is perched on highlands six miles from the Jordan border, overlooking the plains that spread out from the southern outskirts of Damascus.

“Today is a happy day, Busra Sham has been completely liberated,” said Ahmad Masalma, an opposition activist in Daraa. He said some 10,000 rebels from various groups took part in the attack on the town, which began Saturday from three sides and ended at dawn Wednesday. They included members of al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, the Nusra Front.

An amateur video posted online showed rebels wandering through the ancient citadel and standing in the sunlight on the theatre’s stone stage. Other fighters fired their guns in celebration near the columned top of the theater’s imposing, semi-circular seating section.

The videos appeared genuine and corresponded to other Associated Press reporting.

Masalma said it was in the citadel that Syrian government forces made their last stand before finally withdrawing. He said no major damage was done to the citadel or theatre.

However, the Busra Sham Hotel — the biggest and best-known hotel in the region — and nearby historic souks were destroyed in the fighting, Masalma said. Other archaeological sites had been looted by various armed groups and criminals over the past two years.

The town’s capture was also reported by the Local Coordination Committees and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

One of the photographs shared on the Facebook pageThe capture of Busra Sham is a tiny conquest for the rebels in the context of the civil war in Syria, where more than 220,000 people have been killed and millions displaced. The Syrian government — deeply associated with Assad’s Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam — has lost large swaths of territory to the Sunni-dominated rebels and Islamic militants, but continues to hang on to major cities across the country.

Busra Sham is a predominantly Sunni town with a population of about 30,000 but also has a sizable Shiite community. The push on the town coincided with rebel gains in northern Syria on Wednesday near the city of Idlib, where a consortium of rebels launched an offensive a day earlier.

The target of the operation is Idlib, a city of 165,000 people and capital of a province with the same name. Opposition fighters have controlled the countryside and towns across the province since 2012, but Assad’s forces have maintained their grip on Idlib city.

Activists said rebel fighters made advances from the city’s eastern side, seizing three government checkpoints. The Observatory said at least 20 rebels had been killed in the fighting. Among the dead was a senior leader in the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham rebel group known as Abu Jamil Qatab, according to the Observatory and photos posted online.

There was no word on government casualties.

Separately, the Syrian government and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said authorities have released some 350 detainees from several provinces. It was not clear whether those freed Tuesday included any activists or political opponents of the government.

Source: Syrian regime ‘bombs UNESCO world heritage site’ – Telegraph