Cyrene: Once a Greek and Roman Settlement neglected and ruined by Graffiti in Libya - wikipedia commonsSHAHAT, Libya (Reuters) - Graffiti covers the ruins of Cyrene in eastern Libya, a city founded by Greeks more than 2,600 years ago that once attracted tourists but is now neglected and the target of vandals.Insecurity and looting has hit Libya’s archaeological sites in the chaos and fighting that has followed the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, as rival groups struggle to consolidate control of the country.Libya is home to five of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites, listed for their outstanding universal value. Some people took that literally and annexed what they felt they deserved.Hussein wants to hold those who seized land accountable.TWO GOVERNMENTS, FEW VISITORSThe effort to preserve ruins is further hampered by the fact that Libya has two governments. One administration backed by the United Nations sits in Tripoli, while the east has a parallel government.In a rare positive sign, Hussein said that about 1,700 artifacts had been returned since 2011 after they were looted inside the country. Many other items are smuggled abroad though.Leptis Magna in northwestern Libya has been able to escape vandalism thanks to local history fans and relative security at its location near the city of Misrata.Sabratha has been repeatedly hit by fighting between rival factions and UNESCO last year issued an appeal to protect the site. The site received no help.In the capital Tripoli, a lone director is trying to preserve some 18 Roman graves, dating back some 1,700 years which were found in 1958 in the western suburb of Janzour.“There is no support for this site,” said al-Amari Ramadan Mabrouk, director of the Janzour antiquities office.Libyan families come occasionally but otherwise spiders and dust cover the graves.“I cannot give a number for tourists who visit Libya ... but I can say that, before 2011, tourism was popular in Libya,” he said.

Source: Egypt Today October 23, 2018 15:11 UTC