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Iraq needs Russia’s help to restore cultural heritage sites destroyed by IS militants

"We would be more than happy if Russian experts take part in the restoration works," Iraqi Ambassador to Russia Haidar Mansour al-Hadi said

MOSCOW, July 22. /TASS/. Iraq needs Russia’s help in restoration of cultural heritage sites destroyed by Islamic State (a terrorist organization outlawed in Russia) militants, Iraqi Ambassador to Russia Haidar Mansour al-Hadi said in an interview with TASS.

"We need assistance to restore these monuments and we would be more than happy if Russian experts take part in the restoration works," he said.

Irrecoverable damage has been done to Iraq’s cultural heritage by Islamic State militants. On March 24, 2017, the United Nations Security Council passed the first-ever resolution geared to protect cultural heritage. The document, passed on a backdrop of reports on the destruction of cultural heritage sites in Iraq, Syria and other war-torn countries, has a number of recommendation on how to prevent such crimes. Thus, it is recommended to set up the so-called safe zones to protect world heritage sites and regulate exports and imports of historic artefacts through obligatory certification under international standards.