TURKEY RETURNS 2,700 OLD ARTIFACT TO ISRAEL

Hezekiah Inscription to Return to Israel - Jay Bushinsky
An ancient inscription memorializing Jerusalem's salvation from Assyrian invaders 2,700 years ago is to be returned to the Holy Land from Turkey for study and public display. Israel has been trying for about 20 years to recover the artifact. As Assyrian forces under King Sennacherib were about to march on Jerusalem, a defiant King Hezekiah ordered the construction of a tunnel connecting the city to the Gihon Spring outside its walls, ensuring a source of drinking water. An inscription inside the tunnel described the dramatic moment when stonecutters working from either end converged in the middle. Ottoman Turkish authorities shipped the inscription to Istanbul where it has been kept in the Museum of the Ancient East near the Topkapi Palace. (Washington Times)