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AlUla Arts Festival to be Held in January with Diverse Artistic Programs

AlUla Arts Festival will hold its fifth edition from January 16 to February 14, 2026. SPA
AlUla Arts Festival will hold its fifth edition from January 16 to February 14, 2026. SPA
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AlUla Arts Festival to be Held in January with Diverse Artistic Programs

AlUla Arts Festival will hold its fifth edition from January 16 to February 14, 2026. SPA
AlUla Arts Festival will hold its fifth edition from January 16 to February 14, 2026. SPA

AlUla Arts Festival will launch its fifth edition on January 16, 2026, transforming Saudi Arabia's historic AlUla Oasis into a vibrant platform for contemporary art, design, and culture.

The edition, which lasts until February 14, is described as the festival’s broadest and most diverse to date, featuring art exhibitions, performances, and immersive experiences that enrich the region’s cultural and artistic landscape.

This year’s edition marks the return of Desert X AlUla in its fourth edition, alongside a global exhibition presented for the first time as part of the pre-opening program for the anticipated contemporary art museum in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou.

The festival offers its most extensive design program to date through Design Space AlUla, hosting the AlUla Design Exhibition and events featuring Saudi and international designers. A public cultural program will run in parallel, including live performances, immersive shows, and interactive educational activities.

Desert X AlUla 2026 returns from January 16 to February 28 with a new selection of artwork inspired by the theme “Space Without Measure,” drawn from the writings of Gibran Khalil Gibran. The installations act as luminous points, mapping an expansive realm of imagination that explores the interplay between art and nature.

“Arduna” Exhibition, which will be held from January 15 to April 15, features a curated selection of more than 80 artworks by artists from the Kingdom, the region, and around the world.

The exhibition highlights the relationship between humanity and nature and forms part of the preparatory program for the forthcoming Contemporary Art Museum in AlUla, presented in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou and the French Agency for AlUla Development (AFALULA).

During the festival, AlJadidah Arts District transforms into a dynamic creative hub, showcasing new artwork along Incense Road. The program also includes performances by the AlUla Music Hub and an exhibition by Saudi artist Sara Abdu at the Athr Gallery.

Meanwhile, Madrasat Addeera offers visitors direct interaction with artisans and demonstrations of how traditional crafts are being revitalized with a contemporary approach.

Moreover, Cinema AlJadidah will screen a selection of documentary and short films focused on art, while Design Space AlUla highlights the governorate’s growing role as a global creative hub through the AlUla Design Exhibition, along with works produced under its residency programs and the AlUla Design Award.

Villa Hegra will host a photography exhibition, featuring rare images from the early 20th century, alongside a contemporary visual show capturing desert scenes through the lens of Saudi filmmaker Saad Tahaitah.

AlUla will present “Vertige” in partnership with the Chaillot theater in France, with performers from AlUla's community.

In addition, art initiatives held in collaboration with the British Council will include “Reflections,” a fashion exhibition inspired by AlUla’s heritage.

At the nearby “Daimumah” site, visitors can enjoy an experience that blends art with nature through public-art workshops, planting sessions, and traditional-arts classes, offering a space that highlights the bond between people and place and the cultural identity of AlUla.

The AlUla Arts Festival 2026 offers an integrated artistic and cultural experience in one of the world’s notable natural and heritage destinations, further cementing AlUla’s position as an international platform for arts and creativity.

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Culture

Archaeologists Forced by Middle East War to Cut Short Iraq Digs

An Iraqi worker excavates a rock-carving relief recently found at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, on the outskirts of what is today the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on October 19, 2022. (AFP)
An Iraqi worker excavates a rock-carving relief recently found at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, on the outskirts of what is today the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on October 19, 2022. (AFP)
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Archaeologists Forced by Middle East War to Cut Short Iraq Digs

An Iraqi worker excavates a rock-carving relief recently found at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, on the outskirts of what is today the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on October 19, 2022. (AFP)
An Iraqi worker excavates a rock-carving relief recently found at the Mashki Gate, one of the monumental gates to the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, on the outskirts of what is today the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on October 19, 2022. (AFP)

Iraq is home to ruins from some of the world's earliest civilizations, but teams led by international archaeologists have been forced by drone and rocket attacks in the Middle East war to cut short their expeditions.

Archaeologists told AFP that some of the projects interrupted by the war had been planned for years, but their teams have had to evacuate ancient sites since the United States and Israel attacked Iraq's neighbor, Iran.

Like other countries around the region, Iraq has become engulfed in the war, bringing to an abrupt end a period of nascent stability.

Iraq's precious archaeological sites, some dating back thousands of years, had for years faced threats ranging from climate change to successive conflicts.

Under normal circumstances, around 60 international teams would have been working on digs, a government official told AFP, but "all of these missions have left Iraq".

- 'Like a musician' -

Adelheid Otto of Germany's Ludwig-Maximilians-University started a long-planned dig at ancient Shuruppak, modern-day Tell Fara, on February 28.

That same day, Israel and the US launched strikes against Iran, sparking a war that has dragged Iraqi armed groups into the fray -- and cutting short Otto's work.

"We are Near Eastern archaeologists. So that is our work. That is like a musician who can no longer play an instrument," she told AFP.

Her team -- 18 German archaeologists, geologists, geophysical experts and students and seven Iraqi archaeologists -- initially stayed, reasoning travelling the 750 kilometers (460 miles) overland to Türkiye was more dangerous.

"After some days we got kind of used to the rockets and drones above our heads," she said.

But Iraqi officials repeatedly urged them to depart, despite their discovery of ancient cuneiform tablets.

"It is impossible" to leave, she told authorities, insisting on staying extra days. "We have to document it. We have to take photos of everything."

"I told the students you have to work on all the small finds that we have," said Otto, 59, who boasts four decades of experience.

"You never know in any of these countries if you will ever return," she said.

- 'Guarantors' -

Many German institutions had just started relaxing travel restrictions to Iraq after a succession of conflicts, including the 2003 US-led invasion and the extremist ISIS group.

Now, said Otto, archaeologists once again face being shut out.

Iraq's State Board of Antiquities and Heritage head Ali Obeid Shalgham told AFP Iraqi security forces were the sites' "true guarantors", especially as many are in remote rural areas.

He said the country is installing so-called protective "blue shields" -- nicknamed "the Red Cross of heritage" -- at archaeological sites.

The presence of foreign teams is "crucial", said Aqeel al-Mansrawi, an Iraqi landscape archaeologist.

"They work to protect heritage through conservation," he said.

He also emphasized the training Iraqi experts receive from foreigners, vital after years of isolation and war.

"We are always training a lot of Iraqi archaeologists and colleagues," said Otto, of the German institute.

"If it would be cut again, it would be terrible," she said.

Foreign digs must work with Iraqi archaeologists, bringing their international expertise.

Shalgham said the arrangement allows Iraqis "to keep up with global advancements in new technologies and state-of-the-art equipment".

- 'Can't catch a break' -

Chicago University professor Augusta McMahon was in southern Iraq, working at the 6,000-year-old Nippur site, when the war began.

Having worked in the Middle East for almost four decades, this was her third evacuation.

In 2024, she had to leave Iraq, while in 2011, she left Syria.

"We had pressure from a lot of different directions in terms of having to leave," she said, with her eight-person team departing under an Iraqi escort on March 10.

"It is quite frustrating, along with everything else, I feel terribly bad for [my] Iraqi colleagues," she said.

The war has also rippled beyond the immediate: an initiative to finally return the preeminent Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale (RAI) conference to Iraq was cancelled by the University of Baghdad.

The city last attempted to host the event in 1990, according to the university, but it was scrapped with the Gulf War.

"Now 36 years later, they finally pulled themselves together... and it's cancelled again," said McMahon, who was due to be presenting.

"It's like they can't catch a break."

Culture

Thieves Steal Paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse from Italian Private Museum

A visitor looks at works by Auguste Renoir during the press review of the exhibition 'Renoir the draughtsman at 'the Orsay museum, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
A visitor looks at works by Auguste Renoir during the press review of the exhibition 'Renoir the draughtsman at 'the Orsay museum, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
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Thieves Steal Paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse from Italian Private Museum

A visitor looks at works by Auguste Renoir during the press review of the exhibition 'Renoir the draughtsman at 'the Orsay museum, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
A visitor looks at works by Auguste Renoir during the press review of the exhibition 'Renoir the draughtsman at 'the Orsay museum, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)

Thieves made off with three paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse worth millions of euros (dollars) from a museum near the city of Parma in northern Italy, police said on Monday.

The heist took place on the night of March 22-23, with thieves forcing open the entrance door, The Associated Press quoted police as saying.

The three stolen paintings are “Fish” by Auguste Renoir, “Still Life with Cherries” by Paul Cézanne, and “Odalisque on the Terrace” by Henri Matisse.

The Magnani Rocca Foundation, a private museum, lies in the heart of the countryside 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Parma.

Local media reported that the thieves were able to nab the paintings in less than three minutes and escape across the museum gardens.

Established in 1977, the foundation hosts the collection of the art historian Luigi Magnani and also includes works by Dürer, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya and Monet.

The museum believes a structured and organized gang was responsible for the theft, which was interrupted by the alarm, local media reported.

The museum didn't post any statement about the theft on its website and wasn't reachable for a comment, as it is closed on Monday.

The crime in Parma comes after a series of high-profile heists at major European museums, including a major incident in October where thieves stole jewels and other items worth 88 million euros ($101 million) from the Louvre in Paris.

Culture

Iran Says US, Israeli Strikes Damage 120 Museums, Historic Buildings

First responders inspect a residential building hit in an earlier US-Israeli strike in Tehran, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP)
First responders inspect a residential building hit in an earlier US-Israeli strike in Tehran, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP)
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Iran Says US, Israeli Strikes Damage 120 Museums, Historic Buildings

First responders inspect a residential building hit in an earlier US-Israeli strike in Tehran, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP)
First responders inspect a residential building hit in an earlier US-Israeli strike in Tehran, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP)

US and Israeli strikes on Iran have damaged at least 120 culturally or historically significant sites across the country since the start of the war, the head of Tehran city council's heritage committee said.

"At least 120 museums, historical buildings and cultural sites across various provinces were directly targeted and sustained serious structural damage," said Ahmad Alavi.

He was quoted by state TV as naming UNESCO-listed Golestan Palace -- sometimes likened to Versailles -- as well as Tehran's Marble Palace, Teymourtash house and Saadabad Palace.

One of the capital's most visited sites, the Saadabad Palace complex includes an extensive park and museums dedicated to Iranian history.

In addition to the cultural institutions, it also houses the residences of the Iranian president and governor of Tehran province, with judicial and Revolutionary Guards facilities located nearby.

The United States and Israel launched their campaign against Iran on February 28, killing its supreme leader and setting off a war that has since embroiled practically all of the Middle East.

Iran, whose history spans several millennia, possesses significant cultural heritage that has largely been spared from mass tourism.

According to the UN, at least four of the country's 29 UNESCO-listed sites have been damaged in the war: Golestan Palace, Chehel Sotoun Palace in Isfahan, the Masjed-e Jame mosque in the same city, and the prehistoric sites of the Khorramabad Valley.