عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Culture

Saudi Minister of Culture, UNESCO Official Discuss Cooperation in Preserving World Heritage

Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan receives the director general of UNESCO in Riyadh. (SPA)
Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan receives the director general of UNESCO in Riyadh. (SPA)
TT
TT

Saudi Minister of Culture, UNESCO Official Discuss Cooperation in Preserving World Heritage

Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan receives the director general of UNESCO in Riyadh. (SPA)
Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan receives the director general of UNESCO in Riyadh. (SPA)

Saudi Minister of Culture Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Farhan met on Sunday with Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), on the sidelines of the 45th extended session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, hosted by Saudi Arabia.

Prince Badr commended the efforts of UNESCO contributing to the preservation of natural and cultural heritage around the world.

He confirmed the Kingdom's keen interest and aspiration to host the forthcoming UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development (MONDIACULT), scheduled for the year 2025.

In addition, the meeting discussed cooperation between Saudi Arabia and UNESCO in preserving and protecting world heritage and the Kingdom’s backing for the organization’s efforts to support small island developing states.

Prince Badr also reviewed the projects funded by the Kingdom at UNESCO in support of the protection and promotion of culture and heritage.

The minister reiterated the Kingdom's unwavering commitment to supporting the projects and programs championed by UNESCO.

Most Viewed

 
 
Culture

UN Puts 4th Century Gaza Monastery on Endangered Site List

The Saint Hilarion complex dates back to the fourth century. Mahmud HAMS / AFP/File
The Saint Hilarion complex dates back to the fourth century. Mahmud HAMS / AFP/File
TT
TT

UN Puts 4th Century Gaza Monastery on Endangered Site List

The Saint Hilarion complex dates back to the fourth century. Mahmud HAMS / AFP/File
The Saint Hilarion complex dates back to the fourth century. Mahmud HAMS / AFP/File

The Saint Hilarion complex, one of the oldest monasteries in the Middle East, has been put on the UNESCO list of World Heritage sites in danger due to the war in Gaza, the body said Friday.
UNESCO said the site, which dates back to the fourth century, had been put on the endangered list at the demand of Palestinian authorities and cited the "imminent threats" it faced.
"It's the only recourse to protect the site from destruction in the current context," Lazare Eloundou Assomo, director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, told AFP, referring to the war sparked by Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel.
In December, the UNESCO Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict decided to grant "provisional enhanced protection" -- the highest level of immunity established by the 1954 Hague Convention -- to the site.
UNESCO had then said it was "already concerned about the state of conservation of sites, before October 7, due to the lack of adequate policies to protect heritage and culture" in Gaza.
The Hamas attack on October 7 resulted in the deaths of 1,197 people in Israel, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Israel's retaliatory offensive against Hamas has killed at least 39,175 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths.