Demolition of 300-year-old Iraq mosque minaret for road expansion enrages locals

A view of rubble that remains at the site of the historic Siraji Mosque that was demolished for the expansion for a road in Basra, Iraq July 16, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed Aty

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - The demolition on Friday of a 300-year-old minaret of a mosque in Iraq's southern city of Basra to make way for road expansion has enraged locals, religious and cultural authorities who condemned it as a further erosion of Iraq's cultural heritage.

Built in 1727, the 11-metre (36 ft) Siraji minaret and its mosque were toppled by a bulldozer at dawn on Friday morning, its brown mud-brick spire with turquoise ornaments disappearing in a cloud of dust.