ISIL

US Militarism, Having Provoked ISIL into Being, Kills Cult Leader Baghdadi

by Juan Cole

“Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi,” the nom de guerre of the notorious Iraqi terrorist Ibrahim al-Samarrai, is dead, killed in a US special forces raid on his compound in Syria’s northwest Idlib province. 

Why The World Needs an Anti-War Movement

by Cody Foster

It’s time we resurrect a global anti-war movement to visibly show our discontent with these violent war crimes.

Islamist: Sorry I Wrecked Heritage Site

For the first time on record, an International Criminal Court defendant has entered a guilty plea to war crimes.

ISIS Releases Video showing its destruction of the Palmyra Museum's Artifacts

The 57 second video shows militants lifting funerary reliefs from shelving and dropping them forcefully onto the floor. Other historic artifacts are subjected to repeated blows with sledgehammers, filmed for cinematic effect.

How Douglas MacArthur would have responded to ISIS terror attacks

by Arthur Herman

Douglas MacArthur taught the single important strategic lesson any American president can learn: before starting a war, make sure you are committed to winning it.

ISIS Destroys Ancient Adad & Mashki Gates in Nineveh, Iraq

See the photos.

Bill to protect antiquities worldwide goes to Obama

Late in the day, April 26, 2016 and with final House passage, the US government has approved its final amended version of H.R. 1493, "The Protect and Preserve International Cultural Property Act" agreed to in the Senate by Unanimous Consent.

Antiquities expert on Palmyra visit: 'Syria can’t possibly restore the destroyed artifacts'

“Specialists are still working to estimate the exact scale of the damage, but it’s around 30 percent.”

‘Illegal’ Syrian antiquity found on sale for £30,000 in London

An ancient stone ornament illegally removed from Syria has been found on sale for tens of thousands of pounds in an upmarket antiques shop in Mayfair, central London.

Ordinary Syrians are risking their lives to protect their cultural heritage

Ordinary Syrian people are going to extraordinary lengths, risking everything to protect their heritage, despite the horror that has engulfed their country.

Grim New Details of IS Destruction in Syria's Palmyra Museum

The museum was trashed and some of its best-known artifacts and statues were smashed by the militants, who cut off the heads and hands of statues and demolished others before being driven out last month.

Syria says restoring Palmyra to the way it was is its goal

It rejects the proposal to rebuild the city utilizing 3D technologies.

Should we 3D print a new Palmyra?

by Emma Cunliffe

Many argue that 3D printing fails to capture the authenticity of the original structures, amounting to little more than the Disneyfication of heritage.

If All Else Fails, 3D Models and Robots Might Rebuild Palmyra

Cultural organizations have been working to create precise 3D digital models of the threatened heritage monuments in Palmyra, Syria, in case the originals are damaged beyond repair.

A 3D Database of Threatened Syrian Heritage Sites

A team of digital surveyors is working to create the world’s largest 3D database of archaeological sites in Syria, focusing on those at risk of destruction.

Syria: Russia Targets Daesh in Palmyra despite Drawdown

With regime troops and their allies now within striking distance of the city itself, the Russians are softening up the minions of the phony caliphate from the air.

Czech Scholars Chart the Destruction of Mosul Heritage

“We’ve found that 38 monuments have been either ruined or completely razed.”

Andrew Bacevich has a 3 point plan for an American strategy against violent radical Islam

by Andrew Bacevich

Point one: Self-protect. Point two: Restore stability. Point three: Promote agents of change.

Political scientist Fawaz A. Gerges has written a history of ISIS

by Fawaz A. Gerges

He warns it poses a serious ongoing threat to the West.

Studying the 30 Years War Gives Me Hope about Our Religious Wars

by Wayne Te Brake

The evidence from European history suggests not only that peace is possible but that some form of peaceful religious coexistence will likely be the eventual outcome.