ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraq’s culture, tourism, and antiquities ministry on Thursday said that more than 10,000 artifacts have been returned to the country during the tenure of the current government, adding that many others will be returned soon.

Ali Obaid Shelgham, head of the antiquities and heritage authority in the ministry, told the state-owned al-Sabaah newspaper that the efforts are in accordance with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani’s directives to retrieve all the artifacts that were stolen and looted during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

“Under the current government, more than 10,000 artifacts have been recovered from many countries, most notably the US, Norway, Jordan, Italy, Britain, and several other countries,” Shelgham said.

The official noted that discussions continue with authorities in other countries to which these artifacts were smuggled, adding that “many other very important artifacts” will soon be recovered to Iraq from Britain, Lebanon, and France.

Iraq has also received 25 excavation missions from around the world under the current cabinet, operating in various parts of the country.

The current Iraqi government, led by Sudani, has been in office since October 2022.

Iraqi artifacts have been repeatedly subjected to vandalism and looting throughout history, reaching a peak during the 2003 American invasion and the war with the Islamic State (ISIS) from 2014.

Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid in May 2023 attended a ceremony at the country’s embassy in London, during which 6,000 artifacts were handed over to the Iraqi authorities. The antiquities were borrowed “for study purposes” in 1923, according to a statement from Rashid’s office.