Israel threatens to strike museum storehouse containing ‘unique’ Palestinian artefacts, archaeologists say
Archaeological finds secretly evacuated from Gaza City storehouse ahead of Israeli strike
- The French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem secretly evacuated three decades of archaeological finds from its Gaza City storehouse on Thursday.
- The urgent operation followed a warning from the Israeli military to evacuate the building due to the ongoing conflict.
- Director Olivier Poquillon described the rescue as a "high-risk operation" carried out without international assistance or existing infrastructure.
- The evacuated artefacts include items from Gaza's five primary archaeological sites, such as the fourth-century Saint Hilarion monastery, though some unique mosaics were left behind.
- The school highlighted the increasing urgency to save Gaza's ancient heritage, with Unesco identifying damage to at least 94 heritage sites amidst the Israeli military's actions.