IranWire

In a statement released on Saturday, Iran’s Ministry of Cultural Heritage said that during the past two weeks of joint attacks by the United States and Israel, at least 56 museums, historical buildings, and cultural sites across the country have suffered serious damage.

The statement said the largest number of damaged sites was recorded in Tehran, where 19 historical locations were affected, followed by Kurdistan province, where 12 sites were damaged.

The official information account of the Government of the Islamic Republic on the “X” platform also listed several historic buildings in Sanandaj, the capital of Kurdistan province, that were affected. These included the Asef Mansion, the Salar Said Mansion, and the Khosroabad Mansion.

Sanandaj is widely considered the cultural center of Iran’s Kurdish region. The mansions mentioned are centuries-old structures that represent a distinctive blend of Kurdish and Iranian architectural styles. Although the United States and Israel have said their strikes are aimed at military and “suppression” infrastructure, many historical landmarks are located in densely populated urban areas near government offices or IRGC command centers, making them vulnerable to damage from nearby explosions.

Earlier, images were also published showing damage to the Golestan Palace in Tehran and the Ali Qapu Palace in Isfahan.

Golestan Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a notable example of architecture from the Qajar era. Ali Qapu, located in Isfahan’s famous Naqsh-e Jahan Square, is one of the most recognizable symbols of Safavid architecture. Damage to these landmarks is seen by many Iranians - regardless of their political views - as a painful loss of national heritage that goes beyond the country’s current political divisions.

Since the beginning of U.S. and Israeli military operations against Iran, the potential destruction of historical monuments has become a growing concern for international organizations. Lazare Eloundou Assomo, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Center, previously told Reuters that the organization is “deeply concerned about the initial impact of the conflict on many World Heritage sites.” He added that four of Iran’s 29 World Heritage sites have already been damaged since the start of the war, and UNESCO has urged all parties involved to safeguard locations of cultural significance.

Meanwhile, on March 9, the Director General for the Preservation and Restoration of Historical Buildings and Sites at the Ministry of Cultural Heritage announced that the “Blue Shield” emblem had been installed on more than 120 museums and several historic buildings across Iran in an effort to protect cultural assets.

The “Blue Shield” is an internationally recognized symbol placed on cultural sites under the 1954 Hague Convention to identify them as protected heritage during wartime. However, the Islamic Republic is not a member of the Blue Shield International network.