The ancient city of Babylon has once again become a casualty of war in the Middle East where U.S. and Polish coalition forces stationed themselves, using the ancient site as a military depot for the past two years, as reported by Rory McCarthy and Maev Kennedy, writers for The Guardian.

Babylon was chosen as the site for the US military base in April 2003, just after the invasion of Iraq. I must point out that The Guardian is a liberal, anti-Iraq war newspaper, its articles biased against the U.S. and its allies. However, the facts cannot be disputed.

As a history major, this disturbs me. Yes, this is Babylon, a city that was occupied by King Nebuchadnezzar in the Old Testament. "Babylon is a city renowned for its beauty and splendour a thousand years before Europe built anything comparable," according to the article.

Archaeologists are protesting the desecration and have called for an investigation. Polish troops have since turned over the site to museum officials. Just a casualty of war, among thousands of other atrocities.

A profound thought is realized here, that a site that has survived human machinations for over 7,000 years can be destroyed in just two, a testament to this world's meme of "destroy and consume," a parasitic attitude that has infected our civilization for centuries.

Perhaps what is left can be preserved for future generations to visit and study. It's a maudlin thought that future historians must relegate themselves to reading about the ancient city, rather than touch the edifices and stones that were touched by an ancient civilization of ages past.