The Baghdad Museum, founded in 1926, has been closed and reopened several times in recent years, being one of the first victims of political events. Closed in 2019 following the protests and then the Covid-19 pandemic, the museum reopened in March 2022.
"From today, the museum will also open every Friday to welcome Iraqi families and tourists free of charge, from 9am to 5pm" - director of the Iraqi Council of Antiquities, Laith Majid Hussein, for French Press Agency.
Iraq is the cradle of the civilisations of Sumer, Akkad, Babylon and Assyria, to whom humanity owes writing and the first cities. The country has suffered from looting and trafficking in antiquities, both as a result of the US invasion and the activities of the Islamic State. Of the 15,000 pieces stolen from the museum, the authorities have only been able to return a third.
Photo: view of the museum on 24 February 2023, copyrights French Press Agency.