DEPORTATIONS

DEPORTATIONS: translation

   Forceful displacement of people as the result of violent conflict is well documented in Mesopotamia. It arose from the desire of rulers to maintain control over recently conquered territories, or to eradicate resistance, or to make use of the labor power of subject populations by enslavement.

   The archives of Mari document that the population of whole towns could be ordered to move at the behest of the king. The policy became most systematic and organized on the largest scale during the Neo-Assyrian period to suit the needs of imperial expansion and consolidation. Sargon II, for instance, deported nearly 30,000 people from Samaria, and Tiglath-pileser III organized massive deportation of peoples and tribes across his realm. Newly founded cities, such as Kalhu, were settled with displaced people to discourage dissent. The practice of forcing such population movements was continued by the Neo-Babylonian kings, such as Nebuchadrezzar II.