Antiquities and museums getting ready to go into Ebla archaeological site after its liberation from terrorism

Damascus, (ST) –  After violent battles with terrorist organizations in Idlib countryside, the Syrian Arab Army liberated and restored the archaeological site of Ebla .This great site which was absent from our memories during the period of the spread of terrorism there.

Dr. Mahmoud Hammoud, the Director General of Antiquities and Museums, confirmed in a statement that the Directorate will send a specialized team to the ancient Tel Mrdikh, the Kingdom of Ebla, after it had been patrolled by the Syrian Arab Army with the aim of assessing the damage and documenting the current state of the Tel Mrdikh after the attacks that it was subjected to as well as illegal excavations. That led to the destruction of many of the archaeological sites and the looting of its contents and treasures.

Hammoud pointed out that the information that was received by the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums during the spread of terrorist groups in it indicates that the hill has turned into a place for training and shooting by terrorists, which led to the destruction of many of the monuments of the archaeological site. He referred to continuous communication with the Italian mission that discovered the archaeological site and follows its news during the previous years, as the archaeologist Paulo Matteih is very interested in knowing the latest news of the great Ebla kingdom.

It is noteworthy that Tel Mrdikh, the Kingdom of Ebla is an ancient kingdom dating back to the second half of the third millennium B.C. It is a large empire with extensive relations with the cities and civilizations of Mesopotamia and the Kingdom of Ebla contains the oldest royal archives.

The Kingdom of Ebla was one of the most important cultural archaeological sites in the world discovered by the Italian mission headed by the archaeologist Paolo Mattier in 1968; the facts are slowly becoming clear about ancient Syrian history, which is one of the most important tributaries of culture, global civilization and development.

Documenting sabotage of Ebla by terrorist organizations

In an update, SANA today toured the site of Ebla which the Syrian Arab Army had liberated. It also monitored and documented the scale of the destruction and systematic sabotage committed by terrorist organizations in the archaeological site, which it had turned into headquarters and a large training camp that includes a command center of the terrorists of the so-called “Al-Fateh Army”. They also discovered Turkish and Saudi-origin equipment.

The reporter stated that the site, which is about 3 km to the south of the city of Saraqib, was turned into a place for training and shooting by terrorists, which led to the destruction of many of the monuments of the archaeological site.  All these damages come in an attempt to destroy the human civilization represented by the site dating back to the third millennium BC.

 The so called “Al-Fateh Army” terrorists had transformed the Ebla site into caves, headquarters, and training camps that included concrete towers, cliffs, chains, and stair. The design includes rooms for prison and torture center, the source assured a SANA correspondent.

The army units found in the areas liberated from terrorism in the southeastern countryside of Idlib, fortified munitions and masks of toxic gases for the terrorists of the so-called “battalions of truth” and “Legion of the Levant” in the village of Jobas and the town of Ibila.

Raghda Sawas