Middle East: Palmyra Today - Afterword

:(

Martin Ockovsky

My heart goes out to the man and his family. Got to do something about those damn ISIS idiot.

Edward Kim

Some insight into why ISIS may be doing this: <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/isis-profits-from-destruction-of-antiquities-by-selling-relics-to-dealers-and-then-blowing-up-the-10483421.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/isis-profits-from-destruction-of-antiquities-by-selling-relics-to-dealers-and-then-blowing-up-the-10483421.html</a> While the organization is despicable, it's not nearly as senseless as they pretend. Selling these unique artifacts to Western buyers on the black market appears to be a primary source of funding for them. Once they have looted all the most valuable artifacts from a site, blowing it up serves to both cover up this capitalistic interaction with the West, as well as making the prices shoot up.

While this may be one of the lesser things ISIS has done, for many have been brutally tortured and executed like Khaled, it punctuates the goals of ISIS: Anyone outside their group must die. You will be their slaves, or you will die. And they will sooner die than abandon this philosophy.

Mask

He definitely deserves a place in history for what he's done.

Wesley Wu

A great loss for humankind...

Murabito

So much knowledge and history lost ... for the sake of ignorance, hatred and insanity! Rest well Dr. Khaled al-Assad for you deserve so much more.

Nathan O'Connor

This comment might be taken down and if it does I don't care. I really need to say this. I hope that there is a special place in Hell for ISIS.

Parker

Whether or not ISIS is really Muslim is debatable. Not just for the destruction of a mosque, but they force Islam onto Christians. It is stated quite clearly in the Quran (there holy book) not to do that to People of the Book (Jews, Muslims, and last but not least Christians).

Parker

Seconded.

Marcus Berg

This is a powerful story that I wish had gotten more attention.

Jane Mayhew

Very moving.

Emil

Why do this? The temple of Bel was even a mosque!

The Brit Git

It's important to remember acts of courage and sacrifice like this. Thank you for helping to spread the word, James.

William Icenrose

Thank you for make this vid. James. :)

Krista Dís Guðmundsdóttir

It's been really painful to read about modern Palmyra. I'm not sure what else I can say, on top of everything else going on in Syria, its history is being deliberately targeted. Intellectually it feels like the least of what's happening when you look at the torrent of refugees that our papers insist on calling migrants for some reason, but emotionally it cuts almost as deep.

RMS Oceanic

Thank you for mentioning this.

barefoot James

I can choose to dislike ISIS because of our religious differences. I can choose to dislike them because of our philosophical differences. I could even choose to dislike ISIS because of our cultural differences. This...this is why I dislike ISIS. Our differences mean nothing compared to the fact that they have chosen to embrace ignorance and destroy our collective history.

Christopher Pelletier