WEEKLY REPORT 87-88
March 30 – April 12, 2016
U. S. Dept. Cooperation Agreement Number: NEA-PSHSS-14-001
BY Michael D. Danti, Amr al-Azm, Allison Cuneo, Susan Penacho, Bijan Rouhani, Marina Gabriel, Kyra Kaercher, and Jamie O’Connell
DOWNLOAD: REPORT
* This report is based on research conducted by the “Safeguarding the Heritage of the Near East Initiative,” funded by the US Department of State. Monthly reports reflect reporting from a variety of sources and may contain unverified material. As such, they should be treated as preliminary and subject to change.
Executive Summary
The ancient site of Palmyra, as well as the nearby Deir Mar Elian (St. Julian) Monastery in al- Qaryatayn and the Bilal Mosque in Tadmor, are now accessible to journalists and civilians, resulting in a flood of photographs and video footage of these sites. These images document months of accumulated vandalism and combat damage. DGAM officials conducted a preliminary visit to ancient Palmyra on March 30, 2016, but the team was only able to access a limited portion of the site due to ISIL IEDs. As a result, the on-site photographs and images of ancient Palmyra focus on a limited and biased sample of monuments within the Roman city, leading many commentators to assert that the destruction was not as severe as anticipated. However, DigitalGlobe satellite imagery released on March 30, 2016 showing portions of the site inaccessible to the DGAM team reveals that since September 2, 2015 —when the last DigitalGlobe imagery was available — an additional 12 tower tombs and one funerary temple in the site’s necropoli were intentionally damaged or destroyed, often with explosives. They are:
- Tower Tomb # 22
- Tower Tomb #65
- Tower Tomb #87
- Tower Tomb #91
- Tower Tomb #95
- Tower Tomb #96
- Tower Tomb #98
- Tower Tomb #100
- Tower Tomb #102
- Tower Tomb #103
- Tower Tomb of Bene Ba’a
- Tower Tomb of Hairan Belshuri
- Funerary Temple # 186
Looting of the ancient site, an attested problem before the ISIL occupation, continued while under control of the militants. Furthermore, military occupation of the site has resulted in damage to or the destruction of many standing remains, particularly evident in the Northern Necropolis. A comprehensive, in-depth site assessment will not be possible for some time since the full negative impacts of aerial bombardment, heavy weaponry, and light weaponry cannot be assessed from a distance. Moreover, such combat damage often results in sub-surface structural damage to standing remains, and many of Palmyra’s significantmonuments are subterranean tomb complexes. Ultimately it is too early to comment on thesite’s overall condition.
In recent days a great deal of discussion has focused on the next steps for Palmyra, with UNESCO, the Russian federation, and other organizations offering to assist the Syrian regime in rebuilding the damaged monuments, and the question of Palmyra has become increasingly politicized. ASOR CHI reiterates the concerns raised in our most recent Special Report “The Recapture of Palmyra,” published on April 3, 2016:
The capture of Palmyra from ISIL militants does not necessarily safeguard the region’sheritage. Palmyra suffered significant damage while previously under SARG militarycontrol, prior to ISIL’s capture of the site in May 2015, and subsequently was subject to an extended aerial bombardment campaign by SARG and Russian forces to expel ISIL militants. The World Heritage Site and surrounding area are still occupied by armed forces actively engaged in combat, which continues to pose a significant threat to theregion’s heritage.
Over the longer term, the greatest threat to Palmyra is mismanagement stemming from prioritizing immediate and highly visible results, ultimately grounded in larger political objectives, and not guided by conservation best practices, community-based heritage management, and sustainability. The immediate (and politically expedient) reconstruction of the demolished Baalshamin Temple and Temple of Bel is currently an active topic of discussion amongst some scholars, politicians, and pundits. This not only poses an unfeasible and misguided heritage management solution, but it also fails to address the greatest threats to ancient Palmyra, let alone the needs of the modern community. The negative impacts of aerial bombardment, heavy weaponry, and light weaponry cannot easily be seen from a distance or may result in sub-surface, invisible structural damage. While it is tempting to immediately respond to the most glaring damage, a better use of resources would involve the implementation of a coherent emergency response plan and triage that prioritizes the intact monuments in need of repair and maintenance. The full extent of the damage will not be known until heritage experts are allowed full access to the site to complete a thorough and detailed assessment.
By contrast, at this point very little discussion has been devoted to what will become of modern Palmyra. The Syrian regime is eager to reopen the site to the visitors and residents, but this begs the question to what end if there are no residents to enjoy the site once again. Instead the conversation of reconstruction should focus on modernPalmyra. The modern city’s population has been forced to flee and continues to betraumatized by the war. The most important priority is to assist with the rebuilding of housing, hospitals, houses of worship, schools, and other infrastructure, so that these civilians have an opportunity to eventually return to their community.
Since the capture of Palmyra the Syrian cessation of hostilities, declared in February 2016, has become increasingly tense and fragile. Toward the end of the reporting period, increasing violations of the ceasefire had been reported as clashes continued between SARG and opposition forces in Aleppo, Homs, and Damascus. Many sites have been damaged by fighting during this reporting period, including the al-Nur Mosque in Raqqa, the al-KabirMosque in Ma’arat al-Numan, and the Sheikh Saeed Mosque in Saraqib.
Iraqi security forces have halted their operations to reach the ISIL-held city of Mosul until reinforcements arrive. The Iraqi security forces have faced strong resistance from ISIL militants. In addition, efforts by the Shia Popular Mobilization Front have thus far been unsuccessful in recapturing villages near Kirkuk and Fallujah. There were no incidents documented in Iraq during this reporting period.
Key points from this report:
- New video and photographs emerge of Deir Mar Elian Monastery in al-Qaryatayn emerge after pro-regime forces captured the area (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 15-0123 UPDATE).
- New video footage of Bilal Mosque in the city of Tadmor, showing extensive damage, was recorded on April 5, 2016 (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 15-0160 UPDATE).
- New footage shows ongoing looting at the site of Rafid on April 9, 2016 (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0004 UPDATE).
- Images from the UNESCO World Heritage site of Palmyra and the museum continue to emerge as civilians gain access the site (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0041 UPDATE and ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0043 UPDATE).
- DigitalGlobe satellite imagery of Palmyra from March 30, 2016 shows many more tombs have been destroyed than previously reported (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0044).
- SARG airstrikes damage four mosques in Rif Dimashq Governorate (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0045).
- The al-Nur Mosque in the city of Raqqa was damaged, reportedly by US-led coalition airstrikes, on April 1, 2016 (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0046).
- Looting and illegal excavations in the Bosra Roman ruins continues (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0047).
- The al-Kabir Mosque in the town of Ma’arat al-Numan, Idlib Governorate was damaged by a car bomb (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0048).
- The Church of the Child Jesus in Tadmor, Homs Governorate was damaged (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0049).
- The Sheikh Saeed Mosque in Saraqib, Idlib Governorate was reportedly damaged by SARG airstrikes (ASOR CHI Incident Report SHI 16-0050).