Surrounded by Conflict, an Ancient Synagogue Crumbles in Iraq

[Behind the Aegis]

ALQOSH, Iraq—The 800-year-old synagogue believed to house the tomb of the biblical prophet Nahum could become the next victim of Iraq's ancient and modern conflicts.

The crumbling stone walls, weakened by weeds sprouting from cracks, tilt precariously over a sidewalk; the decorative buttresses that prop up the pockmarked roof appear ready to cave in.

To keep the historic structure from collapsing, authorities have erected a makeshift metal awning to shield it from the fierce winds that whip across the storied Nineveh Plains. They have strung rusty coils of barbed wire around its perimeter to discourage worship in the synagogue for fear of falling masonry, and they have tried to plug some holes with gravel and sand. But with no active preservation effort, the tomb seems condemned to a slow, weather-induced death.

It's an unexceptional plight in Iraq, where more than 12 years of near-unbroken violence have inflicted irreparable damage on many cultural sites and compromised the government's limited attempts to safeguard the country's heritage.

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[potone]

1. This is very, very sad.

All of the ancient minority religious communities seem to be under threat in Iraq, one of the many unintended tragic consequences of our ill-judged war against that country. What a social and economic catastrophe Bush and co. created!

[Diclotican]

2. Behind the Aegis

Behind the Aegis


How tragic isen't this - and I guess, it is more, ten of thousands of similar structures all over Iraq - who are in danger - or have allready been destroyed as part of the war George Walker Bush, en all - started in Iraq - and did a horrible job protecting after the old regime of Saddam Hussain was overtrown...

Bush jr - and Tony Blair and the rest - wil not be given any good remark about how they destroyed Iraq - and also in the prosess did posible to do so mutch damage to so mutch of our shared history... The whole Bush clan would do mutch damage controll if they was doing their best to distance themself from George Walker Bush, and Tony Blair - and the neo-cons...

When the dust finaly settle - we wil know how mutch damage the 14 year, and ongoing war have made to our shared history in Iraq - and I fear the vandals have plundred Iraq for mutch of it ancient treasures..... Ancient treasures who is part of our shared history and belong to everyone of us...

What Blair and Bush did to Iraq in 2003 - is similar to what Djengis Khan did to the area back in the 1200s - and the result was devestating for the next few centuries back then...

Diclotican