Archaeologists say they have uncovered the earliest evidence for large-scale warfare in the area of Mesopotamia, an ancient civilization in what is now Iraq.
The conflict occurred near the present-day Syrian border, the researchers say, the same border where U.S. forces have lately been battling to quell a flow of suspected terrorists into Iraq from Syria.
The archaeologists said a huge battle destroyed one of the Mesopotamia's earliest cities at around 3500 B.C. The conflict left behind, preserved in their places, artifacts from daily life in an urban settlement in upper Mesopotamia, according to researchers from the University of Chicago and the Syrian government.
"The whole area of our most recent excavation was a war zone," said the university's Clemens Reichel, who co-directed a team that spent October and November at the site.
Tag : Archaeology, Iraq.