CRI听力:Iraq Urges Coalition to Protect Antiquities

The Iraqi government is calling on the US-led coalition to protect the country's antiquities from the Islamic State.

And at the same time, the Iraqi government says the coalition isn't doing enough to save Iraq's heritage.

The call comes following word the Islamic State destroyed part of the 2-thousand-year-old city of Hatra with bulldozers in northern Iraq over the weekend.

This comes just days after the militants destroyed parts of the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud.

The destruction of the priceless artifacts has drawn global condemnation, with the United Nations describing it as a war crime.

Iraqi Tourism and Antiquities Minister Adel Shirshab contends the coalition aircraft could have done more to prevent the assault on Iraq's history.

"We appeal and we held them responsible and I am sure many others share my opinion that slow action by the international coalition against these groups and their crimes has encouraged these groups to attack, destroy and pillage."

The city of Hatra was inscribed into UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1987.

Archaeologists have compared the assault on Iraq's cultural history to the Taliban's destruction of the Bamyan Buddhas in 2001.