Skimmed that thread but saw no mention of why the site is in such a bad shape.
It's because the usians made a tank and helicopter parking lot out of it when they arrived, angering scholars and enthusiasts all over the world, and then the polish built a military base there, at which point the anger had mostly turned into exhaustion.
How the restoration of ancient Babylon is drawing tourists back to Iraq
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45236473