Conflict and crisis put six World Heritage sites at risk
In response, the UN cultural agency (UNESCO) has added six sites to its List of World Heritage in Danger.Meeting in Busan, Republic of Korea, the World Heritage Committee on Sunday granted emergency protection to three newly inscribed World Heritage sites and added three previously recognized sites to the danger list.UNESCO said the emergency procedure reflects a world increasingly shaped by armed conflict, climate change and other crises that pose “serious threats” to irreplaceable cultural and natural heritage.Heritage in conflictThree new sites were inscribed – or added – through an emergency procedure before being added to the danger list.One is Mount Amel Castles in southern Lebanon, a collection of five fortresses spanning the Crusader, Islamic and Ottoman periods. Already under enhanced protection under international humanitarian law, the castles have suffered extensive damage during the ongoing conflict. According to the Committee, “the ongoing conflict directly jeopardizes the site's conservation and requires urgent intervention”.Another emergency inscription, Sebastia in the Occupied West Bank, preserves archaeological remains spanning more than 2,000 years of history.
