Tuesday, September 19, 2006

THE ANCIENT SITES OF LEBANON, it now seems, did sustain some damage during the war:
Lebanon World Heritage Sites Need Repair

By AURELIE TOULEMONDE, Associated Press Writer

Monday, September 18, 2006

(09-18) 10:57 PDT PARIS, France (AP) --

Three UNESCO World Heritage sites in Lebanon, including some of the Middle East's most significant ancient ruins, are in urgent need of repairs after a month of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, the U.N. agency said Monday.

In one case, frescos in a Roman-era tomb in Tyre were shaken to the ground when a building 500 feet away was bombed, said U.N. experts, who visited Lebanon and reported on their findings. Some of the paintings were destroyed.

In the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos, ruins were stained by an oil spill. In Baalbek, another Phoenician city which has some of the finest examples of imperial Roman architecture temples may have suffered structural damage, the experts said.

[...]
The article also says that some of the ruins of medieval and ancient Byblos were contaminated by the oil spill and the cleanup will be a long and involved process.

More details here. And the BBC reports that UNESCO is appealing for funds for the repairs and cleanup.

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