Indigenous artifacts also deserve legal protection – Winnipeg Free Press
Jun. 29, 2026
Following the 2003 U.S.-backed overthrow of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, criminals looted important religious and political items from the country, whose civilization is more than 4,000 years old.
During the invasion, for example, an estimated 15,000 pieces of art, statues, books and other objects were stolen from the National Museum of Iraq.
In total, it is thought that more than 120,000 items of significance were stolen and sold on the global market — with the worst period being between 2014-17, when the militant group ISIS controlled large swaths of Iraqi territory and used smuggling to fund their efforts.
