During the 2011 Libyan Revolution a number of archaeological and cultural heritage sites suffered from looting. Most noteworthy was the theft of the Benghazi Treasure, a collection of 7700 gold, silver and bronze coins, jewelry and statuettes, from the main branch of Libya’s commercial bank in Benghazi.
For reports of the joint Association of National Committees of the Blue Shield (ANCBS) and International Military Cultural Resources Work Group (IMCuRWG) Mission to Libya, with links to photo documentation see:
- Civil-Military Assessment Mission for Libyan Heritage by Blue Shield and IMCuRWG – September 2011
- 2nd Civil-Military Assessment Mission for Libyan Heritage – November 2011
- USCBS statement on Libya “Protection of Important Libyan (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) Cultural Heritage Sites” – March 2011
- Blue Shield statement on Libya – March 2011
Latest News & Alerts
April 29, 2026
On Wednesday, May 6th, Laurie Rush, Secretary of the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield, and Brian I. Daniels, President of the Archaeological Institute of America and USCBS Board member, will present a webinar on the [...]
March 28, 2026
A recent Hyperallergic article on the threats to Iranian cultural heritage includes comments by both Cori Wegener, founder of the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield (USCBS) and current USCBS Board member, and Brian Daniels, Director [...]
March 23, 2026
NPR recently discussed the damage to Iranian cultural heritage and included comments from USCBS President, Patty Gerstenblith. You can hear the audio piece or read the article on NPR's website.
