Destroying history’s treasures

THE beheadings, this time, were performed with hammer and drill, not sword or knife—for the victims were made of stone, not flesh. The destruction of ancient statues (some replicas) at the Mosul museum in Iraq, a video of which was released on February 26th, is far from the most heinous crime committed by Islamic State (IS). The jihadists have killed thousands of people, often in grisly fashion. But the group’s sacking of holy sites and libraries are elements of a broader attack, perpetrated in the name of Islam, on the Middle East’s rich cultural and religious heritage.

Although its actions are abhorrent, IS poses a dilemma for Muslims. Many of the group’s beliefs are not disconnected from Islam, as some claim, but rather the product of an extreme interpretation of the faith. IS supporters justify their actions with verses taken from the Koran or examples from the life of the Prophet Muhammad. In Mosul the militants said they were shattering “idols”, the worship of which is forbidden in Islam. Muhammad himself cleared idolatrous statues from the Kaaba, the centrepiece of Mecca’s Sacred Mosque. This was in keeping with the tradition of Abraham, another prophet (sacred to several faiths) who destroyed the wooden gods being worshipped by his people.