Baghdad -- The Iraqi Minister of Culture, Ahmed Fakak Al-Badrani, stated on Sunday that efforts are being exerted to restore the ancient city of Nimrud in northern Iraq, which was destroyed by ISIS militants in 2015.

In a statement to Rudaw News, Al-Badrani explained that approximately 35,000 artifacts have been recovered, and both unaffected and damaged objects are being identified for preservation using a scientific technique.

ISIS militants began a full-scale attack in northern and western Iraq in June 2014, taking control of vast areas of land, including the city of Mosul in Nineveh province, which the terrorist organization announced to be the capital of their caliphate between Iraq and Syria.

Nimrud was one among the historic sites that ISIS sought to destroy during their rule.

A war crime was declared by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in response to the worldwide criticism of the destruction of Nimrud city.

Al-Badrani said that Baghdad has not yet calculated how many antiquities were taken during the ISIS raids on Nimrud city. He also affirmed that foreign specialists were involved in the recovery of the stolen objects and commended the commitment of the archeological teams on the site, describing their work as inspiring.

The city of Nimrud, which is 360 kilometers north of Baghdad and 32 kilometers south of Mosul, served as the capital of the Assyrian Empire between 1250 BC and 610 BC.