Tag: University of Warsaw

Poland’s ‘priceless’ primeval forest pits environmentalists against state

by Bernard OSSER Agence France-Presse TEREMISKI, Poland (AFP) – Stopping by a giant oak tree in Europe’s largest surviving primeval forest, environmental journalist Adam Wajrak pauses in admiration. “The trees here were born when the United States did not exist yet, when electricity had not been invented,” said the journalist, who moved to a village in the vast Bialowieza forest 25 years ago. “It’s shocking that we protect historical monuments that are 400 years old […]

Gold-hunting diggers destroy Sudan’s priceless past

by Sammy Ketz Agence France-Presse JABAL MARAGHA, Sudan (AFP) — When a team of archaeologists deep in the deserts of Sudan arrived at the ancient site of Jabal Maragha last month, they thought they were lost. The site had vanished. But they hadn’t made a mistake. In fact, gold-hunters with giant diggers had destroyed almost all sign of the two millenia-old site. “They had only one goal in digging here — to find gold,” said shocked […]