Conflicts to Watch in The New Millennium

Local National Defense Forces commanders often engaged "in war profiteering through
protection rackets, looting, and organized crime". NDF members were also implicated in
"waves of murders, robberies, thefts, kidnappings, and extortions throughout
government-held parts of Syria since the formation of the organization in 2013", as
reported by the Institute for the Study of War.
Criminal networks have been used by both the government and the opposition during
the conflict. Facing international sanctions, the Syrian government relied on criminal
organizations to smuggle goods and money in and out of the country. The economic
downturn caused by the conflict and sanctions also led to lower wages for Shabiha
members. In response, some Shabiha members began stealing civilian properties and
engaging in kidnappings. Rebel forces sometimes rely on criminal networks to obtain
weapons and supplies. Black market weapon prices in Syria's neighboring countries
have significantly increased since the start of the conflict. To generate funds to
purchase arms, some rebel groups have turned towards extortion, theft, and
kidnapping.
Cultural Heritage
In January 2018 Turkish air strikes have seriously damaged an ancient Neo-
Hittite temple in Syria's Kurdish-held Afrin region. It was built by the Arameans in the
first millennium BC.
As of March 2015, the war has affected 290 heritage sites, severely damaged 104, and
completely destroyed 24. Five of the six UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Syria have
been damaged. Destruction of antiquities has been caused by shelling, army
entrenchment, and looting at various tells, museums, and monuments. A group
called Syrian Archaeological Heritage Under Threat is monitoring and recording the
destruction in an attempt to create a list of heritage sites damaged during the war and to
gain global support for the protection and preservation of Syrian archaeology and
architecture.
UNESCO listed all six Syria's World Heritage sites as endangered but direct
assessment of damage is not possible. It is known that the Old City of Aleppo was
heavily damaged during battles being fought within the district, while Palmyra and Krak
des Chevaliers suffered minor damage. Illegal digging is considered a grave danger,
and hundreds of Syrian antiquities, including some from Palmyra, appeared in Lebanon.
Three archeological museums are known to have been looted; in Raqqa some artifacts
seem to have been destroyed by foreign Islamists due to religious objections.
In 2014 and 2015, following the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, several
sites in Syria were destroyed by the group as part of a deliberate destruction of cultural
heritage sites. In Palmyra, the group destroyed many ancient statues, the Temples of
Baalshamin and Bel, many tombs including the Tower of Elahbel, and part of
the Monumental Arch. The 13th-century Palmyra Castle was extensively damaged by
retreating militants during the Palmyra offensive in March 2016. ISIL also destroyed
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