A covered market in the Syrian city of Allepo went up in flames over the weekend.

Around 1,500 shops were destroyed in Souk al-Madina, a world heritage site that dates back to the 14th Century.

In addition to the human lives being lost in Syria, it has been argued that the destruction of culture also matters a great deal, because respect for culture and traditions plays an important part in keeping the peace in societies.

Emma Cunliffe, from the Department of Archeology at Durham University, told the Today programme "the heritage is suffering a lot" in Syria.

"When the conflict spreads, it's taking the heritage as well.... Heritage has a power to reconcile people."

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