Over 400 historic texts dated between the 13th and 20th were recovered at the Mar Behnam monastery, which was occupied by ISIS for more than two years. The books were hidden in metal bins behind a brick wall.
As government forces drive ISIS terrorists out of Mosul and nearby Nimrud the scale of destruction to one of Iraq’s greatest archaeological treasures comes to light. Once magnificent masterpieces of art are now broken into pieces and bulldozed flat. Moreover, the crippled Mosul Dam threatens to flood vast populated areas filled with archaeological sites with water from the Tigris river.
Despite ongoing war in Syria, archaeological works in the ancient city of Karkemish, Gaziantep province, on the Turkish-Syrian border continue. The archaeologists and Turkish authorities plan to open the site for public as an open-air museum in 2017.