The Tal Afar Citadel (Turkish: Telafer Kalesi)[1] is a citadel located in Tal Afar, a city in Nineveh Governorate in northwest Iraq. The citadel was built by the Ottoman Empire,[2] although it contains remains dating back to the Assyrian period.[3]
| Tal Afar Citadel | |
|---|---|
Telafer Kalesi | |
| Tal Afar, Iraq | |
 The Tal Afar Citadel in 2007 | |
| Coordinates | 36°22′32″N 42°27′16.7″E / 36.37556°N 42.454639°E |
| Type | Citadel |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Iraq |
| Open to the public | No |
| Condition | Ruins |
| Site history | |
| Built | 16th century |
| Built by | Ottoman Empire |
| Fate | Demolished by ISIL in 2015 |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Tal Afar (2005) Battle of Tal Afar (2017) |
Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the citadel housed the mayoral, municipal and police headquarters of Tal Afar. It was used as a base by American forces in the Battle of Tal Afar in 2005.[2] Tal Afar fell to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in June 2014, and the militants used the citadel as a prison for women and girls who were to be forcibly married to ISIL members.[4]
In December 2014, ISIL blew up the city's northern and western walls, causing extensive damage.[5] The militants also excavated some of the ruins within the citadel, probably to look for antiquities which they could sell.[3] UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova strongly condemned the destruction of the citadel.[6] The citadel was recaptured by Iraqi forces during the battle to recapture Tal Afar in 2017.[7]
References
edit- ^ "Türkmeneli TV Tarihi Telafer Kalesi'nde". Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ a b Schlosser, Nicholas J. (August 2015). "The Pacification of Tal Afar". U.S. Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Extremist IS militants damage ancient citadel, two shrines in Iraq's Nineveh". Xinhua News Agency. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 13 January 2015.
- ^ "Iraq: ISIS executes at least 150 women for refusing to marry its militants". Al Akhbar. 17 December 2014. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014.
- ^ Jones, Christopher (15 February 2015). "ISIS destroys several more sites in Mosul and Tal Afar". Gates of Nineveh. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016.
- ^ "UNESCO Director-General strongly condemns attacks at ancient site of Tel Afar in Iraq". UNESCO. 7 January 2015. Archived from the original on 2 March 2015.
- ^ "Iraqi fighters retake historic city from ISIS". The Straits Times. 30 August 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.