Cultural Cleansing and Iconoclasm Under the Islamic State

<p>This chapter analyzes the destruction of heritage perpetrated by the "Islamic State" (IS) in Iraq and Syria. It takes as its empirical focus the targeting of both Yezidi and Christians and their heritage in Iraq and Syria. To date, little attention has been paid to the intersection between the human suffering and the heritage destruction undertaken by the IS. This chapter also examines the cultural cleansing undertaken by the IS against these two fragile minorities by also looking at the iconoclastic acts against the tangible representations of their heritage. This chapter situates the discussion within the conceptual framework of heritage, community, and violence, by arguing that attacks on heritage sites in conjunction with genocidal pogroms or ethno/religious conflict occur precisely because heritage plays such a critical role as the tangible manifestation of the community.</p>