Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
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Damascus, SANA- The General Department of Antiquities and Museums on Wednesday held a symposium dubbed “Palmyra…History and Antiquities” at Damascus National Museum with the participation of a number of researchers in the domain of antiquities.
Participants in the symposium underlined the importance of Palmyra City and its historical and archeological status on the international level.
They referred to what the city is facing of terrorist war that aims at destroying it and robbing its antiquities, and the efforts exerted by the Department of Antiquities and Museums in cooperation with the authorities concerned and the international organizations to preserve and protect the antiquities.
One of the recent crimes perpetrated at the hands of the ISIS terrorists is destroying a nearly 2,000-year-old arch of Triumph which was one of the most recognizable sites in Palmyra.
Director-General of the Department Maamoun Abdul-Karim told SANA that the symposium aims to shed light on the importance of Palmyra and its antiquities on the international level, and on the destruction in the city by Takfiri terrorists.
Abdul-Karim underlined the necessity of standing by the great city of Palmyra which has become a hostage in the hands of terrorists, because losing it means losing the cultural capital of the Syrian civilization.
He indicated that all the Syrians should unite the ranks for protecting the Syrian history and culture from being robbed by terrorists and criminals who are trying to obliterate the Syrian culture, identity and heritage.
Researcher Ali al-Qayyem said that only 20 percent of the archeological treasures in Palmyra City have been discovered till now despite of the fact that the excavations started from about one hundred years which reflects how much the city is rich in antiquities.
Al-Qayyem added that the Takfiri terrorists are trying to destroy the City of Zenobia because it is the symbol of the Syrian identity, indicating that stealing the antiquities has become the second source of the terrorists’ revenues after oil as there is an international network for smuggling antiquities from Syria and Iraq and more than 900 archeological sites in Syria are exposed to robbery, secret excavation and destruction.
Director-General of Palmyra Museum Walid al-Asaad talked about the acts of the ISIS terrorists in Palmyra and the negative effects of that criminal acts on the locals and the employees in that area, and about the martyrs who sacrificed to preserve the Syrian heritage, identity and civilization.
Al-Asaad indicated that the terrorists’ acts of destruction and sabotage at the greatest city in the world can’t be described as they destroy the temples, tombs and buildings which are unique on the international level, indicating that the goal behind that is destroying the deep-rooted history of the city and the prosperous future.
During the symposium, copies of a book dubbed “Khaled al-Asaad…Palmyra Adorer” were distributed among the participants. The book includes a number of al-Asaad’s works and his biography.
The 80-year-old Archaeologist Khaled al-Asaad, was beheaded and crucified by the terrorist organization of “Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham” (ISIS) on colonnade in the ancient city of Palmyra on 18th of August.
Al-Asaad was born in Palmyra in 1934. He received diplomas in history and education from Damascus University and worked as Director of Archeology in Palmyra and curator of Palmyra National Museum for over 50 years.
R.J/ Barry
