Lebanon is a country that has 5,000 years of history. In fact, National Geographic recently declared that
Lebanon is one of the world’s oldest countries
. Home of the most ancient civilizations, Phoenicia, Lebanon is full of historic sites that date back to thousands of years in addition to artifacts and ruins that were left behind by the different cultures that were present in Lebanon. Yesterday, the Lebanese Ministry of Culture declared that the Protection of Historic Sites and Buildings law got approved by the Council of Ministers. It still needs to make it to the parliament before it is enacted and considered an enforceable law. Many activists and organizations in Lebanon are behind this achievement. If this law gets approved by the parliament and signed by the President, Lebanon would have made a huge step in saving its rich heritage.
Returning the stolen artifacts to Lebanon!
In fact, the Ministry of Culture in Lebanon is also working on repatriating all the artifacts that were stolen from Lebanese museums during the civil war. The Ministry announced that the Office of the New York County District Attorney in the United States notified them about a stolen sculpture that it has been seized in July 2017. An ancient marble
sculpture of a bull’s head got stolen from Lebanon
during the civil war. The 2,400-year-old statue has been excavated from the Temple of Eshmun in 1967 in Sidon and looted later in summer 1981. The Office of the New York County District Attorney, the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, and the U.S. Embassy of Lebanon are cooperating to return the sculptures to where they belong safely.
