Cultural Heritage and the Arab Spring: War over Culture, Culture of War and Culture War

Abstract

Abstract The Arab Spring launched political shifts that were once considered impossible. Five years later, the events have taken a darker turn, with a mounting death toll; the displacement of millions; and the destruction of cities and infrastructure. The role of cultural heritage in the protests and conflicts of the Arab Spring and the Middle East generally is manifold. Culture has become a collateral damage of war, as the destruction that opponents have inflicted on each other has also harmed cities and cultural heritage sites. But, more than merely an unintended target, culture has also been ‘combatant’ and ‘victim’ at the same time, engaged, wielded and contested in three primary, interrelated dimensions: a war over culture; a culture at war; and a culture of war. Analysis of issues in cultural heritage and an awareness of the historic resonance of culture seem all the more urgent at a time of great uncertainty, contestation and ongoing violence.