ISIS Christian monastery, Satellite photos acquired by The Associated Press affirm what abbey leaders and Middle East preservationists had feared: The oldest Christian abbey in Iraq has been bargain to a acreage of rubble, yet addition victim of the Islamic State group's adamant abolition of ancestry sites it considers heretical.St. Elijah's Abbey stood as a abode of adoration for 1,400 years, including a lot of afresh for U.S. troops. In beforehand millennia, ancestors of monks tucked candles in the niches, prayed in the chapel, admirable at the altar. The Greek belletrist chi and rho, apery the aboriginal two belletrist of Christ's name, were carved abreast the entrance.
This month, at the appeal of the AP, digital adumbration close DigitalGlobe tasked a top resolution camera to grab photos of the site, and afresh pulled beforehand images of the aforementioned spot.
Before it was razed, a partially restored, 27,000-square-foot rock and adhesive architecture stood fortress-like on a acropolis aloft Mosul. Although the roof was abundantly missing, it had 26 characteristic apartment including a chantry and chapel. One ages after photos appearance "that the rock walls accept been actually pulverized," said adumbration analyst Stephen Wood, CEO of Allsource Analysis, who pinpointed the abolition amid August and September 2014.
"Bulldozers, abundant equipment, sledgehammers, possibly explosives angry those rock walls into this acreage of gray-white dust. They destroyed it completely," he said from his Colorado offices.
On the added ancillary of the world, in his appointment in exile, in Irbil, Iraq, Catholic priest Rev. Paul Thabit Habib, 39, stared in atheism at the before- and after- images.
"Our Christian history in Mosul is getting atrociously leveled," he said in Arabic. "We see it as an attack to belch us from Iraq, eliminating and finishing our actuality in this land."
The Islamic State group, which now controls ample locations of Iraq and Syria, has dead bags of civilians in the accomplished two years. Along the way, its fighters accept destroyed whatever they accede adverse to their estimation of Islam.
St. Elijah's joins a growing account of added than 100 religious and acclaimed sites looted and destroyed, including mosques, tombs, shrines and churches. Age-old monuments in the cities of Nineveh, Palmyra and Hatra are in ruins. Museums and libraries accept been pillaged, books burned, artwork ashamed — or trafficked.
U.S. troops and admiral had formed to assure and account the monastery, a hopeful endeavor in a agitated abode and time.
"I would brainstorm that abounding humans are activity like, 'What were the endure 10 years for if these guys can go in and abort everything?'" said U.S. Army assets Col. Mary Prophit, who was deployed there in 2004 and afresh in 2009.
Built in 590, tragedy addled at St. Elijah's in 1743, if as abounding as 150 monks who banned to catechumen to Islam were massacred by a Persian general. In 2003 St. Elijah's shuddered afresh — this time a bank was burst by a catchbasin turret destroyed off in battle. Iraqi troops had already confused in, auctioning debris in the cistern. The U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division took control, painting over age-old murals and scrawling their division's "Screaming Eagle," on the walls. Afresh a U.S. aggressive chaplain, acquainted its significance, began a canning initiative.
Roman Catholic Army clergyman Jeffrey Whorton, who acclaimed Mass on the monastery's altar, was crestfallen at its loss.
"Why we amusement anniversary added like this is above me," he said. "Elijah the astrologer have to be weeping."
At the Vatican, agent Rev. Federico Lombardi, acclaimed that aback the abbey dates aback to the time Christians were united, afore the breach with Orthodox and Catholics, the abode would be a appropriate one for many. He said it was the aboriginal account he had had of the destruction.
"Unfortunately, there is this systemic abolition of adored sites, not alone cultural, but aswell religious and spiritual. It's actual sad and dramatic," Lombardi told the AP
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