More Canaanite artifacts and structural remains in Tell Es-Sakan hill south of Gaza City continue to be unearthed and destroyed during illegal and hasty digging activities in the area without any consideration to their historical importance.
The site a 5000-year-old Bronze Age Palestinian settlement was discovered by chance in 1998 during construction of a new housing complex and construction work was temporarily suspended at the time to allow an archaeological investigation to be conducted by local and French archeologists.
Under contracts between sand dealers and government parties bulldozers and excavators have been for over six weeks digging up the site sweeping and damaging ancient structures and pottery objects.
The archeological site has also become an easy target for night-time raiders.
Palestinian archeology professor Ayman Hassouna paid a visit to the site recently and affirmed that officials from the ministry of antiquities permitted the ministry of economy to bulldoze the site after they signed a paper asserting it is not an archeological place although ancient remains and objects keep appearing every day.
Hassouna told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) that several archeology professors appealed to the government to provide protection for the site and other important historical places in southern Palestine especially as the issue started to gain a momentum in the international press.
“The site proves that we have a presence and an identity especially since our war with Israel is over existence and history. The occupation is trying to falsify history and unfortunately we are destroying today the evidence and history of our existence here” the professor added.
He expressed hope that the authorities would move to stop such illegal bulldozing activities on the site warning that the UNESCO threatened to take action if the site was not preserved.
