{"id":2845,"date":"2015-09-07T08:00:34","date_gmt":"2015-09-07T12:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thediplomaticenvoy.com\/?p=2845"},"modified":"2020-02-05T15:09:49","modified_gmt":"2020-02-05T20:09:49","slug":"isis-antiquities-palmyra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/thediplomaticenvoy\/2015\/09\/07\/isis-antiquities-palmyra\/","title":{"rendered":"Islamic State’s War on Antiquities Targets Ancient City of Palmyra"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Kathryn Chaney<\/a>
\n<\/strong>Staff Writer<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

BBC reports that the Islamic State group\u00a0has recently been deemed responsible for the destruction of numerous antiquities. In light of the mass destruction, media outlets have raised the question as to the motives behind the Islamic State’s\u00a0actions. One possible explanation lies in the group’s\u00a0ultimate goal: forming a caliphate that represents their interpretation of the Islamic State.<\/p>\n

The global community has seen the formation of other caliphates by extremist groups within the Middle East. For example, caliphates were created by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan, respectively, in the 1990s and early 2000s. However, the Islamic State has taken the ideals of their caliphate one step further by facilitating the obliteration of past ancient societies whose social characteristics clash with the group’s\u00a0stringent interpretation of\u00a0Islamic belief.<\/p>\n

Newsweek reports that the Islamic State and its followers wish to destroy the antiquities to combat the \u201cshirk.” Shirk is defined as the \u201csin of practicing idolatry or polytheism,\u201d which disrupts Muslim reverence to Allah. However, the Islamic State’s interpretation of \u201cthe roots of Islam\u201d lean\u00a0toward brutality against non-Muslim states and an affront to the Western world. The Islamic State\u00a0has even gone to praise the Taliban’s actions in 2001 and Al-Qaeda\u2019s 9\/11\u00a0attacks\u00a0for\u00a0preventing shirk and protecting\u00a0the true Islamic faith.<\/p>\n

According to BBC, the Islamic State\u2019s most recent demolition targeted\u00a0Palmyra’s ancient Temple of Bel in Syria. The attack on the temple was facilitated through an explosion on its perimeter. Although only partial information could be gathered, Maamoun Abdulkarim,\u00a0head of Syria’s\u00a0Department of Antiquities and Museums, stated, \u201cAny damage done was partial, and the basic structure is still standing.”<\/p>\n

Palmyra houses\u00a0structures and artifacts that blend ancient Greek, Roman, and Persian cultures. The city as a whole represents one of the few remaining junctions of ancient culture in Syria and the Middle East, holding insurmountable insight into the foundations of modern civilization.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BBC reports that the Islamic State group has recently been deemed responsible for the destruction of numerous antiquities. In light of the mass destruction, media outlets have raised the question as to the motives behind the Islamic State’s actions. 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