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Iraq using sacred sites to protect its military: Australia
Sydney, Apr 02: Australian military chiefs accused Iraq today of using sacred historical and religious sites to shield its army and military vehicles from attack.
Sydney, Apr 02: Australian military chiefs accused Iraq today of using sacred historical and religious sites to shield its army and military vehicles from attack.
Defence spokesman Brigadier Mike Hannan cited the example of Ctesiphon, an important third century site on the Tigris river about 35 kilometres south of the besieged capital Baghdad, which he said the Iraqi military had used to shelter its vehicles.
Ctesiphon, founded by the Parthians, was the capital of the Parthian and the Sassanid empires, sacked by the Muslims in 637. But Hannan said coalition forces had pulled back from attacking the site because of its historical significance.
He released aerial photographs showing lines of Iraqi military vehicles between a museum complex and an ancient Ctesiphon Arch clearly designated by a blue and white sign as being important cultural sites under the 1954 Hague convention. The United States, Britain, Australia and Iraq are all signatories to the convention, which aims to protect important cultural sites in war time.
Bureau Report
Ctesiphon, founded by the Parthians, was the capital of the Parthian and the Sassanid empires, sacked by the Muslims in 637. But Hannan said coalition forces had pulled back from attacking the site because of its historical significance.
He released aerial photographs showing lines of Iraqi military vehicles between a museum complex and an ancient Ctesiphon Arch clearly designated by a blue and white sign as being important cultural sites under the 1954 Hague convention. The United States, Britain, Australia and Iraq are all signatories to the convention, which aims to protect important cultural sites in war time.
Bureau Report