Byzantine–Sasanian War · War Crimes & Atrocities
The last Roman–Persian war fell heavily on the civilians of the contested provinces. The Persian conquest of the Roman East was marked by the sack of great cities, mass killing, and the deportation of populations and treasures to Persia — above all in the fall of Jerusalem in 614. Heraclius's counteroffensive brought its own devastation to the Persian heartland and the deliberate destruction of Zoroastrian shrines. The war also unleashed communal violence between Christians, Jews, and others across the Holy Land.
35,000+
deaths
Victims: The Christian population of Jerusalem(Christian sources give death tolls of tens of thousands (some claim up to 60,000); the figures are disputed and likely exaggerated, but a large massacre and mass deportation certainly occurred.)
20,000+
deaths
Victims: The urban populations of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt(Beyond those killed in the storming of cities, large numbers of craftsmen, clergy, and captives were deported to Persia; the total civilian toll of the conquest is unknown.)
15,000+
deaths
Victims: The population and shrines of the Persian heartland(The number of civilian dead from Heraclius's campaigns of devastation is unrecorded but substantial; the destruction of property and sacred sites was extensive.)