afrinpost
The Directorate of Antiquities of Afrin said that the archaeological hill of Abboudan in Bulbul sub-district in Afrin region was subjected to grave violations at the hands of the Turkish authorities, due to excavation and digging works.
‘Tal Aboudan’ is located southeast of the village of Aboudan, close to the Syrian-Turkish border, and to the west of the city of Cyrrhus (Nabi Hori), which was destroyed by the Turkish forces with heavy vehicles. The hill is about 35 km from the center of Afrin, to the north of the city.
The Directorate,- based in al-Shahba areas, explained that, according to witness testimonies, as well as satellite images of the site in the post-occupation period, the entire area on the high hill (Acropolis) was bulldozed, the layers and archaeological finds were destroyed with heavy machinery, looted, stolen and exported to Turkish territory.
The report added that the excavations extended to the vicinity of the hill, and many olive trees were uprooted near the base of the eastern and western hill in particular. The area excavated on the surface is estimated at approximately (5000) m2, while the area that was excavated and dredged in the vicinity of the hill is estimated at about (14,000) m2, without being able to know the exact area and the true depths of these excavations after the date of the satellite image on 9/28/2019.
