War loot and the illicit art trade: legal gaps persist

The illicit trade in art looted from conflict zones remains a persistent problem despite international conventions. The Hague Convention of 1954 and its protocol, signed by around 110 countries including the UK, France, and the Netherlands, prohibit theft and pillage of cultural property during armed conflict and require repatriation of unlawful exports. However, the protocol only applies to situations of 'occupation,' leaving looting in the chaos of war beyond formal occupation unaddressed. The US has not signed the protocol but its cultural property laws offer some protection. UN Security Council Resolutions impose specific restrictions for cultural property from Iraq and Syria, but no similar consensus exists for Afghanistan, Libya, Ukraine, Lebanon, Yemen, Sudan, or Iran. EU Regulation 2019/880 prohibits importing goods unlawfully removed from their origin into the EU, originally targeting terrorist financing via antiquities from ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Due diligence requires checking the Art Loss Register and Icom Red Lists, which cover over 20 countries prone to looting but not yet Iran. Experts note a delay of several years between conflict and looted objects entering the art market, often via online closed networks.