11:58Iraq: Saddam Hussein’s castles abandoned following 2003 US military intervention
Dozens of castles, palaces and monuments built across the country by Iraq’s former leader Saddam Hussein remain in a state of disrepair, with one particular site at the ancient city of Babylon south of Baghdad seen in footage filmed in the run-up to the 20th anniversary of the US military intervention.
Footage shows the castle, built after the first Gulf War, which became a US base during the 2003 conflict. It was a move experts from the British Museum condemned in 2005, UNESCO described as a 'grave encroachment' and Iraq’s state board of antiquities maintains today was a disaster for the area.
"When the US forces initially entered Iraq, they stormed this place which was deemed globally one of the most sacred and important archaeological sites, Babylon's city, so it was regrettable, shameful, and irrational to transform it into a base for US troops," stated Hussein Fleeh Khalil Al-Ammari, inspector of antiquities of Babylon.
"Their heavy machinery badly affected the place, not to mention the digging process that paved the way for tampering and theft," he continued.
The site, associated with the famous 'Hanging Gardens of Babylon’, did receive UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2019, although the castle and many more like it remain in a state of disrepair, with walls daubed with graffiti.
"We hope the authorities pay more attention to the place and improve it," said one tourist, Mustafa Kassim Mohammed "It is an Iraqi heritage not belonging to the former regime. We ask the authorities to better take care of it and erase all the graffiti."
Under a plan put forward last April by the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, many palaces would become museums, although media reports claimed that exorbitant costs and bureaucracy have proved a challenge.
"Before its inclusion on the World Heritage List, it was neglected and its condition remains unfortunately inappropriate with the graffiti on the walls. Therefore, the presidential palace must be transformed into a museum and become a tourist destination, a step that is most needed," stated another visitor, Ali al-Makhzomi.
Al-Ammari explained why he thought the museum project was worth the effort in the long-run.
"These were different views regarding the presidential palace whether to convert it into casinos, cultural centres, a hotel, or meeting headquarters. However, we insisted on our scientific opinion that this large structure with its huge halls can be converted into a museum of the archaeological city,"
He claims the area already receives up to 1,000 tourists a day, over 3,000 on holidays, and transforming the palace into a museum would bring additional revenue to the area.
On March 19, 2003, Washington, along with coalition forces, launched a military offensive on Iraq that toppled Saddam Hussein under the pretext of disarming Iraq’s presumed weapons of mass destruction, plunging Iraq into bloodshed and chaos, resulting in the violent deaths of around 200,000 civilians, according to the Iraq Body Count project, although there are other estimations that increase or decrease this figure.
This was preceded by a series of developments that eventually led to the US deploying its army on the Arab country. On January 28, George Bush addressed the nation making it clear that that the US military campaign to topple Saddam Hussein was only a matter of time.
The US officially withdrew its troops from Iraq by December 2011, but thousands remained as part of security operations or serving as private military contractors. The aftermath of the intervention in the country triggered widespread violence and was linked to the rise of the Islamic State (IS).
11:58Dozens of castles, palaces and monuments built across the country by Iraq’s former leader Saddam Hussein remain in a state of disrepair, with one particular site at the ancient city of Babylon south of Baghdad seen in footage filmed in the run-up to the 20th anniversary of the US military intervention.
Footage shows the castle, built after the first Gulf War, which became a US base during the 2003 conflict. It was a move experts from the British Museum condemned in 2005, UNESCO described as a 'grave encroachment' and Iraq’s state board of antiquities maintains today was a disaster for the area.
"When the US forces initially entered Iraq, they stormed this place which was deemed globally one of the most sacred and important archaeological sites, Babylon's city, so it was regrettable, shameful, and irrational to transform it into a base for US troops," stated Hussein Fleeh Khalil Al-Ammari, inspector of antiquities of Babylon.
"Their heavy machinery badly affected the place, not to mention the digging process that paved the way for tampering and theft," he continued.
The site, associated with the famous 'Hanging Gardens of Babylon’, did receive UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2019, although the castle and many more like it remain in a state of disrepair, with walls daubed with graffiti.
"We hope the authorities pay more attention to the place and improve it," said one tourist, Mustafa Kassim Mohammed "It is an Iraqi heritage not belonging to the former regime. We ask the authorities to better take care of it and erase all the graffiti."
Under a plan put forward last April by the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, many palaces would become museums, although media reports claimed that exorbitant costs and bureaucracy have proved a challenge.
"Before its inclusion on the World Heritage List, it was neglected and its condition remains unfortunately inappropriate with the graffiti on the walls. Therefore, the presidential palace must be transformed into a museum and become a tourist destination, a step that is most needed," stated another visitor, Ali al-Makhzomi.
Al-Ammari explained why he thought the museum project was worth the effort in the long-run.
"These were different views regarding the presidential palace whether to convert it into casinos, cultural centres, a hotel, or meeting headquarters. However, we insisted on our scientific opinion that this large structure with its huge halls can be converted into a museum of the archaeological city,"
He claims the area already receives up to 1,000 tourists a day, over 3,000 on holidays, and transforming the palace into a museum would bring additional revenue to the area.
On March 19, 2003, Washington, along with coalition forces, launched a military offensive on Iraq that toppled Saddam Hussein under the pretext of disarming Iraq’s presumed weapons of mass destruction, plunging Iraq into bloodshed and chaos, resulting in the violent deaths of around 200,000 civilians, according to the Iraq Body Count project, although there are other estimations that increase or decrease this figure.
This was preceded by a series of developments that eventually led to the US deploying its army on the Arab country. On January 28, George Bush addressed the nation making it clear that that the US military campaign to topple Saddam Hussein was only a matter of time.
The US officially withdrew its troops from Iraq by December 2011, but thousands remained as part of security operations or serving as private military contractors. The aftermath of the intervention in the country triggered widespread violence and was linked to the rise of the Islamic State (IS).