ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq has recovered approximately 11,000 artifacts over the past two years, the country’s antiquities and heritage board announced Monday, with negotiations ongoing to recover more smuggled relics. 

"The current government has succeeded in recovering nearly 11,000 artifacts over the past two years, as part of its serious efforts to restore the entirety of Iraq's cultural heritage," Ali Obaid Shalgham, the board's director, told state media, adding that around 6,000 artifacts have been recovered from Britain alone.

Baghdad's efforts have led to the retrieval of a large number of relics from numerous countries, including Japan, Switzerland, Germany, Britain, Lebanon, and Jordan, Shalgham said, with "significant and fruitful cooperation with the United States." 

Modern-day Iraq has been home to humans for millennia. The historical region of Mesopotamia, which spans current-day Iraq and parts of Turkey, Iran, Syria, and Kuwait, has given rise to numerous historic civilizations, including those of the Babylonians and Sumerians. 

Myriad relics have been discovered by archeologists, with Mesopotamian societies having played a salient role in the development of mathematics, astronomy, and agriculture.

More than 40,000 artifacts belonging to Sumerian and Babylonian civilizations that were smuggled out of the country after the US-led invasion in 2003 have already been recovered from the US, Europe, and several other countries, culture ministry spokesperson Ahmed al-Aliawi told state media in June.

Shalgham further noted that negotiations with several countries are ongoing to recover more items, with "positive indications" pointing to the recovery of even more artefacts in the coming days, particularly "those looted during periods of insecurity or smuggled out in the 1990s," and pieces that were loaned for scientific and research purposes.

The country's rich history and abundance of valuable relics have prompted several attempts to smuggle and sell its historic artifacts. Baghdad continues to work with international organizations, including UNESCO and Interpol, to retrieve smuggled relics.

Iraqi law classifies antiquities theft as a serious crime. Under the Antiquities and Heritage Law No. 55 of 2002, offenders face prison sentences from seven to 15 years, along with fines up to six times the estimated value of the stolen artifact.

The law imposes a life sentence for individuals responsible for managing or protecting stolen antiquities. If theft involves coercion or armed individuals, the penalty can escalate to death.