Seljuk Minaret in the Historic Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo Destroyed by the Protestors

Seljuk minaret in The Great Mosque of Aleppo, Syria: Seljuk minaret in The Great Mosque of Aleppo, which was constructed in 1090, was destroyed in Syrian protests on 24 April 2013. The Great Mosque of Aleppo, also known as Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo is largest and also one of the oldest mosques of Aleppo, Syria. This mosque is located in al-Jalloum district of Ancient Aleppo and has also been declared as the World Heritage Site.

This mosque was constructed in 8th century but the present building dates back to 13th century apart from the destroyed minaret that was constructed in 1090. It is believed that the mosque is home of remains of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist.

The activists of President Bashar al-Assad regime and the anti-government activists blamed each other for the destruction of the minaret. It is important to note that this was the second in one week that historic mosque has been damaged seriously.

In the protests ongoing in Syria, five out of six World Heritage sites of Syria have already been damaged, according to the UNESCO. Earlier, the protestors broke into the best-preserved Crac des Chevaliers, ruins in the ancient city of Palmyra and Crusader castles of the world.
 
Antique furnishings as well as intricate sculpted colonnades were burnt. Apart from this, the Islamic relics were also ransacked. Also, the looters took away the box that is said to encompass the strand of Prophet Muhammad's hair.

The cultural agency of the United Nations- UNESCO warned Syria that civil war was posing threat to rich cultural heritage of the country.