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Archaeologists Forced by Mideast War to Cut Short Iraq Digs
Archaeological excavations at sites like Nippur stopped and foreign teams evacuated after US and Israeli attacks sparked regional war, ending years of fragile stability, officials said.
- Regional conflict has forced international archaeological teams to evacuate Iraq, with government officials confirming all roughly 60 missions have departed the country.
- Adelheid Otto of Germany's Ludwig-Maximilians-University began a long-planned dig at ancient Shuruppak on February 28, the same day Israel and the United States launched strikes against Iran, sparking the conflict.
- Otto's 18-person team, including German and Iraqi archaeologists, departed under escort on March 10. "We are Near Eastern archaeologists. That is like a musician who can no longer play an instrument," she told AFP.
- The University of Baghdad cancelled the Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale conference, set to return after 36 years, marking the second time violence has scrapped the event since the 1990 Gulf War.
- Ali Obeid Shalgham, head of the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, stated Iraqi security forces remain the sites' "true guarantors," with the country installing protective "blue shields" at remote locations.
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Total News Sources18
Leaning Left3Leaning Right3Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution40% Center
Bias Distribution
- 40% of the sources are Center
40% Center
L 30%
C 40%
R 30%
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