Islamic State Beheads 82-Year-Old Archaeologist

A Syrian official reported on Tuesday, August 27, that the Islamic State group beheaded an 82-year-old archaeologist from Syria in the ancient city of Palmyra. The group also hung the body of this individual from a column in the main square of the city. According to Reuters, citing the director of antiquities and cultural heritage in Syria, members of the Islamic State, or ISIS, executed the veteran Syrian archaeologist named Khaled al-Asaad on Tuesday. Mamoun Abdulkarim, the director of cultural heritage in Syria, announced this news based on information from the archaeologist's family, who had been responsible for the protection of the archaeological sites in Palmyra for over 50 years. The ancient city of Palmyra, whose most significant ruins date back to Roman times, fell into the hands of the Islamic State in May, raising fears of destruction by ISIS members. In this context, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in London, reported in late June that the self-proclaimed Islamic State forces were laying mines in the ancient area of Palmyra, although their intentions were never clarified. Nevertheless, Reuters reported on Wednesday that this group has not yet caused serious damage to the archaeological sites of the city. In June, ISIS members blew up two religious sites in Palmyra, which experts stated were not among the Roman archaeological sites of the city. According to Mamoun Abdulkarim, the 82-year-old Khaled al-Asaad, whose several research articles have been published in international journals, had been held captive by ISIS for over a month. This Syrian official stated that the body of this renowned archaeologist is still hanging from a column in the main square of the two-thousand-year-old city of Palmyra. The activities of the Islamic State in Syria continue while on Monday, the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS conducted 20 airstrikes against the group in Iraq and Syria. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) warned last month that the Islamic State is looting archaeological sites in Iraq and Syria on a large scale to fund its operations. Irina Bokova, the director of the UN's cultural agency, UNESCO, warned on Thursday, July 11, in London that members of the Islamic State are selling Iraqi and Syrian antiquities through intermediaries. According to Al Jazeera, citing Ms. Bokova, currently one-fifth of the ten thousand recognized archaeological and cultural sites in Iraq are under the control of ISIS. In this context, ISIS has killed '400 people,' including women and children, in Palmyra. The Islamic State group is currently 'laying mines' in Palmyra. Syrian Kurds claim to have completely seized Tal Abyad. UNESCO warns of the looting of global cultural heritage by the Islamic State.