Shattered tiles and trembling domes

How the war has damaged Iran’s historic sites.

One Essential Read One Essential Read Recommended by Kate Turton, Newsletter Editor How 5 weeks of war shattered some of Iran’s cherished monuments   Debris scattered across a staircase inside a building at the Sa’dabad Cultural and Historical Complex. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani In March, before the ceasefire in the war on Iran, Reuters journalists were granted rare access to Iranian heritage sites damaged during the five-week US and Israeli air campaign. They documented damage at 11 historic buildings, including Tehran's Golestan Palace and bazaar, four sites at Isfahan's Naqsh-e Jahan Square and the Chehel Sotoun complex. UNESCO says it has verified damage at seven sites in Iran, including two on its international list. In two decades of ground and air warfare by the United States and its allies in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Afghanistan, Reuters could find no examples of damage to cultural heritage sites listed at the time by UNESCO. Read the full article   Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website   Reuters One Essential Read is sent three days a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here. Want to stop receiving this email? Unsubscribe here. To manage which newsletters you're signed up for, click here. This email includes limited tracking for Reuters to understand whether you’ve engaged with its contents. For more information on how we process your personal information and your rights, please see our Privacy Statement. Terms & Conditions   © 2026 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036