In the chaos that ensued during the war in Iraq, the region became susceptible to the looting of its artefacts and archaeological sites. Widespread looting by Western troops occurred in the area in what was called “the greatest cultural disasters in recent Middle Eastern history” by the New York Times.

The documents in this exhibit would be useful for those researching the destruction of Iraqi cultural heritage during the Iraq War, and would especially help the researcher understand Britain’s response to the aforementioned destruction.