Security service seizes 255 artifacts hidden near highway between Basra and Dhi Qar

BASRA — Iraq’s National Security Service seized 255 artifacts concealed in abandoned areas near the international highway linking Basra and Dhi Qar governorates, the agency said Tuesday.

The operation was based on intelligence information that led units to the site, where forces obtained judicial approval before carrying out a search. The items, hidden with the intent to sell or smuggle them abroad, included coins, pottery, metal objects and stone items of varying shapes and sizes. All recovered pieces were sent to the Board of Antiquities and Heritage, which confirmed they are authentic artifacts covered under Iraq’s Antiquities and Heritage Law.

Iraq recovered nearly 11,000 antiquities over the past two years and continues negotiations with several countries to retrieve more smuggled and looted items. Iraq’s cultural heritage has been heavily affected by decades of conflict and illegal excavation — more than 15,000 artifacts were stolen from the National Museum in Baghdad in April 2003, while thousands more were taken from regional museums and archaeological sites during periods of weak security. In July 2021, Iraq secured the return of around 17,000 looted artifacts from the United States, the largest single repatriation in the country’s history, including thousands of cuneiform tablets dating back more than 4,000 years.