From Beersheba to Babylon: Netanyahu casts himself as liberator of Iran. Speaking at a hospital hit by an Iranian missile, the Israeli prime minister invoked ancient Persia as he hinted at a historic mission (Julian Borger, The Guardian)
It was in the Beersheba, about 1,000km and 2,500 years from Babylon, that Benjamin Netanyahu suggested on Thursday that the time had come for the Jews to repay their ancient debt to Cyrus the Great and bring liberation to Iran.For many PaleoJudaica post on Cyrus the Great, start here and follow the links. Quite a few books about him have been published in recent years. This is far from the first time that his name has been deployed politically by Israel, Iran, or the United States.[...]
Antiquities Authority: No known damage to archaeological sites in Israel (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel)
“To the best of our knowledge, no damage has been caused thus far to archaeological artifacts under the responsibility of the Israel Antiquities Authority, and no reports have been received regarding damage to exhibits in museums,” the statement reads.Iran and Israel secure museum treasures ahead of raids (Noemi Capoccia, Finestre sull'Arte)As a precautionary measure, the IAA has transferred hundreds of crates containing highly sensitive finds — such as glass and other delicate materials — to protected underground storage at the IAA headquarters in the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus in Jerusalem.
Museum institutions in Tehran in Iran and Tel Aviv in Israel have activated their respective emergency procedures in recent hours to safeguard their collections amid escalating tensions between Iran and Israel. According to local sources, escalating hostilities in the region, which have already involved airstrikes on high-density urban areas, have prompted both countries to secure archaeological artifacts, works of art and archives of historical and cultural value.[...]
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