The regime in Iran finished bulldozing a 6.000 year-old historic site in Qom.
Despite warnings by ICHTO, the 6000-year-old historical site of Shad Qoli in Qom was destroyed by the order of the province’s governor office. (CHN Press)
Mehr News reported on the destruction:
Bulldozers working for the Ammar Yasser construction project in Qom have entirely demolished the 6000-year-old Shad Qoli archaeological site in central Iran, the Persian service of CHN reported on Tuesday.
“The license for excavation of the area was issued by the Archaeological Research Center of Iran (ARCI) two years ago at a time when approximately half of the site had already been flattened,” said Siamak Sarlak, director of the team which was to have conducted salvage operations at the location.
“According to the cultural heritage regulations in Iran, the Governor General’s Office of Qom, which is in charge of the Ammar Yasser construction project, was responsible for sponsoring salvage excavations. However, the office refused to provide the necessary funds for carrying out the excavation work and we have recently been informed that the remainder of the site has been completely destroyed by bulldozers,” he added.
The salvage team needed a sum of 50 million rials (about $5250) to excavate the site.
“A dispute arose over which organization — the governor’s office or the ARCI — was responsible for funding the operation. Meanwhile the bulldozers continued the process of destruction, which has resulted in total loss of the archaeological significance of the area,” Sarlak explained.