[MSN] Israel-Hezbollah War Endangers Archaeological Sites, Ecosystems

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Israel-Hezbollah War Endangers Archaeological Sites, Ecosystems

Aug. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The Roman temple complex in the Lebanese town of 
Baalbek has somehow endured the region's centuries of bloody-minded 
conflict. But it may not survive the latest bombing raids of Israeli 
fighter planes, which destroyed two buildings in the town square and 
damaged the Temple of Bacchus.

The well-preserved structure, which has withstood wars and earthquakes 
since its construction in 150 A.D., was cracked in the raids. The nearby 
Temple of Jupiter, the largest religious structure of the Roman Empire, 
is so far unscathed. Both buildings are among the great examples of 
Roman architecture still standing.

Baalbek is just one of many archaeological treasure troves in the Beqaa 
Valley to fall victim to shelling. In addition, the ancient city of 
Tyre, with its important archaelogical sites and architecture, also has 
come under fire. There is no information yet on possible damage to the 
city's Roman and Phoenician ruins, according to Gaetano Palumbo, 
director of archaeological conservation for the World Monuments Fund.

Beirut and Sidon, about 27 miles to the south, both have important 
historic buildings going back to the 10th to 13th centuries, Palumbo 
says. Among those structures is Chehabi Citadel in Hasbaya, which is on 
the fund's 2006 most-endangered list. A fortress for the armies of the 
First Crusade in the 11th century, the Citadel was taken over in the 
12th by the Chehabi emirs, whose descendants occupy it to this day.

Damage in Arqa

Israeli bombing raids destroyed the modern bridge at Arqa, about 62 
miles north of Beirut. Just 70 feet from that bridge, according to the 
Biblical Archaeology Society, is an excavation site believed to have 
been damaged in the pounding -- including Hellene and Iron Age pottery 
pieces and the structures that house them.

Israel is also getting hammered. Archaeologist Ryan Byrne, speaking by 
telephone from Memphis, Tennessee, says he was forced to leave Tel Dan, 
one of the more important sites in the Golan Heights near the 
Israel-Lebanon border, after two of Hezbollah's rockets hit a megalithic 
cemetery nearby.

The site, which chronicles some 9,000 years of human history, is better 
known for the world's oldest intact arched gateway, a 4,000-year-old, 
mud-brick structure now protected under a modern shelter but still quite 
vulnerable to the errant missile.

Jeroboam's Altar

No real damage was done here, but Byrne and his team have packed it in 
and postponed further work until next summer. Also on site is an altar 
set up by King Jeroboam. ``Standing on top of it, you have a good view 
of the war,'' Byrne says.

Megiddo, or ``Armageddon'' as the Greeks like to call it, has been home 
to 37 different cities over thousands of years and is a trove of 
archaeological treasure. Excavators can see -- and feel -- incoming 
missiles, but this Unesco World Heritage Site has not been directly hit, 
yet.

Some Christians believe the Apocalypse is to take place here, with 
Megiddo a staging area for the final battle between good and evil, 
according to the Book of Revelation. Good is expected to prevail, a 
victory that will presage the Rapture, in which the saved are rewarded 
with eternal paradise, while the rest suffer the travails of a violent 
earthly existence.

Archaeology sites and ancient temples aren't the only cultural 
attractions under fire. The Baalbeck International Festival shut down on 
July 12, canceling the Eifman Ballet Theatre of St. Petersburg, the 
Budapest Symphony Orchestra/Nice Opera joint production of ``Lucia di 
Lammermoor'' and a rock concert by Deep Purple.

Environmental Toll

Another war casualty has been the environment. It will be a while before 
we know the full extent of the ecological nightmare unleashed by the 
Israeli strike on the power station in Jiyyeh, but we do know that at 
least 13,000 tons of oil have spread over 93 miles of the Mediterranean 
into Syrian waters, a spill that could grow to three times that amount, 
at which point it will reach Exxon Valdez proportions.

That oil slick, like the incontinent bombing from both sides, has no 
regard for the sanctity of archaeology. Byblos, an ancient harbor 25 
miles north of Beirut renowned for its Canaanite ruins, is now tarred 
with oil. A few miles to the north, a tremendous rock wall carved by the 
Phoenicians 2,800 years ago to protect their ships docked off Batroun is 
likewise on the verge of getting a horrific lube job. But a full 
assessment of the spillage -- let alone cleanup efforts -- cannot even 
begin until the shelling stops completely and Israel lifts its naval 
blockade.

Torching Forests

Israel, meanwhile, has its own eco-troubles. Forest fires -- hundreds of 
them -- started by Hezbollah's wayward Katyushas have torched forests 
all over Galilee and environs. Thousands of acres of grasslands in the 
Hula Valley are toast, as are at least a half-million pine trees in the 
northern Galilee hills.

Just hours before the U.N. cease-fire resolution was to go into effect, 
Israeli defense forces continued to pound eastern Lebanon, while 
Hezbollah lobbed hundreds of missiles into northern Israel. Israeli 
bombers also dropped a more benign payload over Beirut, leaflets asking 
the Lebanese people, ``Will you be able to pay this price again?''

The answer, I think, is obvious. Destruction of history is a price you 
pay only once.

(Mike Di Paola writes about preservation and the environment for 
Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer responsible for this story:
Mike Di Paola at mdipaola at nyc.rr.com.

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