An Iraqi ministry has claimed that United States forces are damaging the ancient city of Kish and must withdraw from the 5,000-year-old archaeological site.

The Ministry of State for Tourism and Antiquities Affairs said in a statement that U.S. forces had set up a camp in Kish, near Hillah, about 60 miles south of Baghdad.

The U.S. military was preventing anyone from entering the important archaeological site to assess the damage, which was not specified, the statement said.

Last year, the British Museum said that U.S.-led troops using the ancient city of Babylon as a base damaged and contaminated artifacts dating back thousands of years in one of the world's most important ancient sites.