Strike Closes Eiffel Tower Down on 100th Anniversary of Creator Death

This photograph taken on December 27, 2023 in Paris shows the reflection of tourists and the Eiffel Tower in a board informing visitors that the site is closed after staff went on strike. (AFP)
This photograph taken on December 27, 2023 in Paris shows the reflection of tourists and the Eiffel Tower in a board informing visitors that the site is closed after staff went on strike. (AFP)
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Strike Closes Eiffel Tower Down on 100th Anniversary of Creator Death

This photograph taken on December 27, 2023 in Paris shows the reflection of tourists and the Eiffel Tower in a board informing visitors that the site is closed after staff went on strike. (AFP)
This photograph taken on December 27, 2023 in Paris shows the reflection of tourists and the Eiffel Tower in a board informing visitors that the site is closed after staff went on strike. (AFP)

The Eiffel Tower was closed on Wednesday, the 100th anniversary of its creator's death, due to a strike, the company that oversees the tower, Societe d'Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), said on the website of Paris' most famous landmark.

"A symbolic action on a symbolic date," said the CGT union in a statement, adding that staff members wanted to call out the current financial management of SETE.

They said they feared poor decisions could lead to a cash shortage, due in part to a lack of visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to expensive repairs needed on the historical building.

The statement added that if the city did not revise its management, the tower could be closed during Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

The wrought-iron 324-meter (1,063 ft) high tower, built by Gustave Eiffel in the late 19th century, is among the most visited tourist sites in the world, welcoming about six million visitors each year.



Culture Ministry, Human Resources Development Fund Launch Training Program for Cultural Scholarship Students

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA
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Culture Ministry, Human Resources Development Fund Launch Training Program for Cultural Scholarship Students

Photo by SPA
Photo by SPA

The Saudi Ministry of Culture, in collaboration with the Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf), on Monday launched a training program for students of the Cultural Scholarship Program aimed to develop national expertise in cultural sectors, promote professional sustainability, and equip scholarship students with the necessary skills to work in the cultural sector.
This program, which falls under the framework of an agreement signed between the Ministry of Culture and Hadaf in June 2023, seeks to support the training of 100 Saudi graduates specializing in cultural disciplines by placing them in institutions and companies in their host countries for up to 12 months.
Training areas include architecture, theater, archaeology and heritage, music, fashion design, visual arts, culinary arts, food science and technology, filmmaking, design, literature, languages and linguistics, and museum and library sciences.