Terrorist groups conduct illegal excavations in Afrin, do harm to Syrian cultural heritage

The Russian Ministry of Defense has revealed that terrorist groups affiliated to the Turkish regime are conducting illegal archaeological excavations in the Turkish-occupied Syrian city of Afrin to later transfer artifacts to Turkey and sell them on the black market.These actions are doing serious harm to Syria’s cultural heritage sites.

“Militants of armed units operating on the Turkish-controlled territory in Syria are conducting illegal digging for architectural and historic values and artifacts near the city of Afrin. Works are conducted with the use of heavy construction machinery and explosives, which incurs serious damage to Syrian cultural heritage sites,” Oleg Yegorov, Deputy Chief of the Russian Center for Coordination and Reconciliation in Syria said on Monday, according to TASS.

Yegorob clarified that the unearthed artifacts are transported to Turkey to be sold on the black market.

During the past years, the Turkish-backed terrorists, under the supervision of Turkish, American and western archeologists, carried out excavations in Syrian archeological sites and looted many artifacts with the aim of undermining the Syrian cultural heritage in a crime against the Syrian people, history and civilization.

Turkish troops occupied the Syrian city of Afrin in 2018.

Hamda Mustafa