Italian Minister of Cultural Activity and Tourism Dario Franceschini called on Tuesday for international mobilization to protect tourist sites from terror attacks.

Franceschini made the statement on the sidelines of a ceremony marking the delivery of 25 looted artifacts from the USA to Italy.

The United States has returned stolen Italian antiquities, including artworks and antique books, to Italy.

Italy has spent the last decade campaigning to retrieve art and cultural artifacts its government says were looted or stolen, said the BBC.

The authorities say the returned pieces are a fraction of the antiquities yet to be recovered.