Baghdad: Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Shorsh Khaled Saeed, received six ancient clay tablets recovered from Turkey, confirming their imminent deposit in the National Museum.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the Foreign Ministry stated that Ambassador Shorsh Khalid Saeed, Undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs and Legal Affairs, expressed appreciation for Turkey’s initiative to return Iraqi artifacts. He commended the ongoing cooperation between the two countries and Ankara’s commitment to respecting international obligations in protecting cultural property and recovering smuggled antiquities.

Ambassador Shorsh explained that these tablets will be transferred to the Iraqi National Museum after completing the necessary technical and legal procedures. They will be added to the museum’s archaeological holdings, which document ancient Iraqi civilization. The Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Ankara received the tablets from the Turkish Ministry of Culture during an official ceremony on June 30, 2025. The event at the Republic Museum in Ankara was attended by Iraq’s Ambassador to Turkey, Majid Al-Lajmawi, and Turkey’s Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism, G¶khan Yazici.

The statement added that the Iraqi government, in coordination with Arab and friendly countries, continues efforts to recover hundreds of artifacts smuggled over past decades. This is part of a comprehensive national plan that includes cooperation with UNESCO and international and regional bodies concerned with preserving cultural heritage.