DAMASCUS, Syria, July 6 (NNN-XINHUA) – Culture Minister, Mohammad al-Ahmad, said, the “foreign-backed war” waged on Syria, not only targeted the peace and security of the country, but also the cultural heritage and history.
Al-Ahmad made the remarks during an interview with Xinhua, saying, the Culture Ministry has a plan to rebuild the damaged ruins and historic sites, which have been subject to systematic destruction and looting, at the hands of foreign-backed rebels, including the al-Qaeda-linked militants and the Daesh group.
The minister said that the challenges facing the Syrian culture are immense and have always been throughout history as, during ancient wars, many of the historic sites suffered damage and destruction.
He said, in Aleppo city, for instance, many of the buildings that have been destroyed during the war are ancient ones, which means that the war is targeting the Syrian culture.
He noted that the terrorist groups have targeted the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria, which has 2,000-year-old artefacts and sites.
“In fact, the targeting was a cultural one in the first place. We have a long work to do, particularly in the ruins that have sustained big damages,” he said.
Regarding the ministry’s plans to restore the ruins, the Syrian minister said, “We have plans to rebuild the ruins and we have plans to rebuild the human, because building is not only through the reconstruction of buildings, but also rebuilding the human being that has also suffered from the war and violence.”
As part of the reconstruction of the human, the minister said, the ministry is interested in translating foreign literature.
“We realise that translation is a method of rebuilding the culture and human beings as well,” he said.– NNN-XINHUA
