Sep 25 2012

UNESCO to ‘save’ Iraq’s leaning minaret

By Sami Elias

Azzaman, September 25, 2012

The U.N.’s cultural agency, UNESCO, has agreed to repair Iraq’s tilting minaret known as al-Hadba, an official in the Province of Nineveh said.

The minaret, one of Iraq’s major attractions, is situated in the northern city of Mosul, the capital of Nineveh Province.

Built more than 800 years ago, the cylindrical minaret is in urgent need of repairs and rehabilitation as its tilting is reported to have reached dangerous proportions.

The minaret is part of a mosque, called the Great Mosque, the oldest surviving structure of its type in the city.

Provincial spokesperson Qahtan Sami said Nineveh Governor Atheel al-Najafi had a meeting with UNESCO representatives who visited Mosul for the specific purpose of inspecting its ancient wonders

Sami said Najafi signed a memorandum of understanding with UNESCO in which the cultural agency agreed to “save and restore al-Hadba which belongs to the Great Mosque.”

The remains of ancient Nineveh are situated within the modern city of Mosul and are represented in two major mounds – Tel  Quijok and Tel Nabi Younis.

Both mounds have yielded fascinating artifacts belonging to the Assyrian empire. Nineveh was Assyria’s political capital.

Al Hadba is often called the Pisa of the Middle East in  reference to the famous leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy.

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