Loot returned
The week's news at a glance.
Baghdad
The FBI this week returned to Iraqi officials several ancient stone seals that a U.S. Marine bought from a souvenir stand last year. After the unidentified Marine learned through an archaeologist that the artifacts were 5,000 years old, he voluntarily turned them over to the FBI. Last month, U.S. customs officials confiscated similar stone seals from the luggage of a scholar. Immediately after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, there were reports that 170,000 ancient objects had been looted. Those accounts turned out to be greatly exaggerated. But museum officials say that the true loss—some 15,000 artifacts—is still a cultural disaster.
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The best folk albums of 2025
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Parthenogenesis: the miracle of 'virgin births' in the animal kingdom
The Explainer Asexual reproduction, in which females reproduce without males by cloning themselves, has been documented in multiple species
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What will bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table?
Today's Big Question With diplomatic efforts stalling, the US and EU turn again to sanctions as Russian drone strikes on Poland risk dramatically escalating conflict