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KSA Participates in 216th Session of UNESCO's Executive Board

KSA Participates in 216th Session of UNESCO's Executive Board
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KSA Participates in 216th Session of UNESCO's Executive Board

KSA Participates in 216th Session of UNESCO's Executive Board

Saudi Arabia participated in the 216th session of the Executive Board of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The event kicked off at the organization's headquarters in Paris and will continue until the 24th of May.

The Kingdom is represented by Princess Haifa bint Abdulaziz bin Mohammed bin Ayyaf Al Muqrin, the permanent representative of the Kingdom to UNESCO and Chair of the World Heritage Committee, with the participation of the Saudi National Committee for Education, Culture, and Science.

In the Kingdom's speech at the opening session, Princess Haifa reiterated Saudi Arabia's keenness to boost international cooperation among the 193 member states of the organization and to contribute to achieving the goals of the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which are in line with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, state news agency SPA reported.

She also expressed her appreciation to the organization for its interest in the draft resolution submitted by the Kingdom and Kuwait during the 215th session of the Executive Board to establish a global framework for open science to counter pandemics, which aims to create a flexible global system for capacity development and knowledge transfer.

The Saudi permanent representative concluded the speech by expressing the Kingdom's aspiration to host the World Heritage Committee in Riyadh next September, adding that the meeting would be the first to be held with in-person attendance in four years and would discuss the registration of global heritage sites of great importance.

The Kingdom's strategic position in the organization is reflected in its membership in three main committees of UNESCO: its membership in the Executive Board of the organization, which includes 58 member states; its membership in the World Heritage Committee; and its membership in the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

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Captain Cook Statue in Sydney Defaced Ahead of Australia’s National Day 

A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
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Captain Cook Statue in Sydney Defaced Ahead of Australia’s National Day 

A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)

A statue in Sydney of British explorer James Cook, captain of the first Western ship to reach the east coast of Australia, was sprayed with red paint and damaged two days before Australia's national day, authorities said on Friday.

It was the second time the statue has been defaced and vandalized in the last year. Police said that they had begun an investigation and that several items had been found near the statue.

Local councilor Carolyn Martin said the vandals may have scaled a fence around the statue using a ladder, which they left behind.

"It's an absolute mess," Martin told radio station 2GB. "They have splattered paint all over it, then they have managed to get to the top of the statue and they've knocked his hand off and also part of his face and nose."

For many Indigenous Australians, who trace their lineage on the continent back 50,000 years and make up about 4% of the country's population of 27 million, the Australia Day holiday is known as Invasion Day, symbolizing the destruction of their cultures by European settlers.

Many Indigenous groups want Australia to drop celebrations or move the date, which marks the anniversary of the arrival of the British First Fleet in 1788.

Every year on Jan. 26, protesters rally against the mistreatment of Indigenous people, who are by most socio-economic measures the most disadvantaged people in the country.

A survey by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on Friday showed the support to keep Jan. 26 as Australia's national day surged to 61% from 47% over the past two years, signaling a shift in voters' sentiment.