Drones fly over ancient Nimrud to help secure Assyrian ruins

Iraqi soldiers began painstaking work on Monday to secure the remains of the 3,000-year-old city of Nimrud, a day after driving out ISIS "militants" who overran and ransacked the ancient Assyrian capital.


Nimrud's palace and temples, once at the heart of an empire which stretched across the Middle East, were razed by the ultra-hardline zealots after they swept through northern Iraq in 2014, destroying historic sites they declared idolatrous.

Whether any treasures at Nimrud can be rescued will be hard to assess until archaeologists can get there.

That will take time because of fears the militants have left bombs or even "fighters" concealed in tunnels among the ruins.
 [dailystar.com.lb/Reuters]
14/11/16

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