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21:27 GMT
CAIRO, March 6 (KUNA) -- Sunni Islam's prominent Al-Azhar University has condemned ISIL's demolition of an ancient Assyrian palace in Iraq as "forbidden by Islamic Sharia law, and rejected in toto" and crtisised the militant group's reported trading of ancient artefacts.
After the militant group posted videos on the internet showing their destruction of the 3,000-year-old palace in the ancient city of Nimrud by bulldozer, an Al-Azhar statement described the act as a "major crime committed against the world as a whole."
The actions come only a few days after the group were seen smashing statues in Mosul's main museum, some dating back to thousands of years. Nimrud is located close to Mosul, Iraq's second largest city which is under ISIL control.
Al-Azhar said ancient monuments are "historic and human values that should remain unharmed" and are part of "a human legacy that should protected."
ISIL are carrying out "the destruction of an identity and an obliteration of the history of entire peoples," added Al-Azhar, which accused the militants of committing "a war crime that will remain unforgotten by history.
"Fundamentalist organisations (like ISIL) excel in causing fear amongst people due to the brutality of their crimes, which they lyingly attribute to the (Islamic) faith. The faith is not guilty of these (crimes).
"Some burn, some kill and others destroy civilisations, cultures and ethnicities thus implementing an occupational agenda aimed at emptying out our Arab and Islamic nations of their cultural heritage," added the academic religious establishment.
The statement went on to attack the group's ideology which it described as "twisted," and urged the need for immediate international coordination to tackle its practices in order to ensure the protection of Arab and Islamic nations. (end)
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