Sudan war threatens ancient Meroe pyramids, a UNESCO Heritage Site

What the report says

Sudan’s ongoing war is putting the Meroe pyramid complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, at growing risk, according to Al Jazeera. The site, about 200km north of Khartoum in River Nile state, contains more than 200 pyramids built between about 800 BC and 350 AD as tombs for rulers of the Kingdom of Kush.

The report says fighting and insecurity have stopped preservation work, leaving the structures exposed to weathering and other damage. Archaeologist Mahmoud Suleiman warned that the site could face serious collapse risks because basic maintenance has been impossible during the conflict, which began in April 2023. Guards and antiquities officials also described windblown sand, thick vegetation and salt crystallisation as accelerating the decay of the fragile stonework and ancient inscriptions.

Al Jazeera added that Meroe has long been vulnerable because of its desert setting, but the current war has intensified the threat by dispersing archaeological staff and halting foreign missions. The report places the site within a wider pattern of cultural damage in Sudan, citing UNESCO’s warning that more than 100 cultural sites have been damaged and at least 22 museums looted or destroyed since the war started.

The preservation of Meroe matters because it is one of Sudan’s most significant archaeological landscapes and a key remnant of the Kushite civilization. Any further deterioration could mean the loss of centuries-old heritage that has already survived past looting and environmental wear.