Grassley sponsoring bill to restrict ISIS profiting from sale of antiquities

CEDAR RAPIDS - Sen. Chuck Grassley wants to put the 'moral authority of criminal law” behind stopping ISIS from funding terrorism through the sale of historical artifacts.

He's part of a bipartisan effort to restrict ISIS trafficking in stolen artifacts, including the sale of those antiquities in the United States. ISIS, he said, has pillaged historical artifacts while ransacking cities and then sold those antiquities on the black market. The Congressional Research Services estimates black market sales of artifacts may be ISIS' second-leading source of revenue behind the sale of oil.

'We need to do everything we can to stop terrorist financing,” Grassley told reporters Wednesday. 'This bill would help cut off a source of the funding that supports terror and instability in Syria and beyond.”

He's joined with Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, and David Perdue, R-Georgia, to sponsor the Protect and Preserve International Cultural Property Act. A partner bill has been approved in the House.

The United States, he said, is a market for the antiquities. Typically, the U.S. would rely on a 1970 UNESCO agreement to restrict importation of artifacts. However, because the U.S. lacks diplomatic relations with the Assad regime in Syria, additional authorities are needed.

Evidence suggests ISIS collects a tax on antiquities excavated and smuggled out of its territory. Government officials say the majority of the trade is run by the ISIS. However, reports suggest that many groups, including portions of the Syrian government, other combatants and criminal networks also smuggle or trade in antiquities.