The Islamic State group has begun bulldozing the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud in Iraq, the Government said, in the jihadists’ latest attack on the country’s historical heritage.IS “assaulted the historic city of Nimrud and bulldozed it with heavy vehicles,” the tourism and antiquities ministry said on an official Facebook page on Friday.
An Iraqi antiquities official confirmed the news, saying the destruction began after noon prayers on Friday and that trucks that may have been used to haul away artefacts had also been spotted at the site. “Until now, we do not know to what extent it was destroyed,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
Nimrud, one of the jewels of the Assyrian era, was founded in the 13th century BC and lies on the Tigris River around 30 kilometres southeast of Mosul, Iraq’s second city and the IS group’s main hub in the country. “I’m sorry to say everybody was expecting this. Their plan is to destroy Iraqi heritage, one site at a time,” said Abdulamir Hamdani, an Iraqi archaeologist from New York’s Stony Brook University.