TEHRAN – Iran’s Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts said on Saturday that at least 56 museums, historical monuments and cultural sites across the country had suffered serious damage due to airstrike conducted by the United States and Zionist regime of Israel.
In a statement, the ministry said the strikes had caused structural damage to a number of historic buildings and cultural sites in several provinces, describing the incidents as an attack on Iran’s historical identity and on what it called the shared heritage of humanity.
According to the statement, the highest number of damaged sites was recorded in the capital province of Tehran, where 19 monuments were affected.
Among the locations cited were the UNESCO-listed Golestan Palace, the historical bazaar of Tehran, Kakh-e Marmar (the Marble Palace), the former Senate building, the Sepahsalar Mosque and several historic administrative and residential buildings, the ministry said.
The ministry added that in western Iran, 12 historical structures were reported damaged in Kordestan province.
In central Iran, the cultural landscape surrounding the UNESCO-listed Naqsh-e Jahan Square in Isfahan was also affected, according to the statement. The square and its surrounding monuments are among Iran’s most prominent examples of Safavid-era architecture.
Additional damage was reported in Lorestan province and Kermanshah province, while several historical houses in the ancient port of Siraf in Bushehr province were also said to have been hit.
The statement added that an archaeology museum in Ilam province had also sustained damage during the attacks.
The ministry said it had lodged formal protests with international organizations including UNESCO, ICOMOS and the United Nations through diplomatic and legal channels, adding it was assessing the full scale of the damage and would prepare an emergency restoration and conservation plan for affected sites after the end of what it described as ongoing hostilities.
In that regard, the Islamic Republic has called on scholars, artists and international cultural institutions to condemn the attacks and support efforts to protect cultural heritage sites, the statement said.
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