World heritage sites are rarely immune to the effects of war, as the 2024 example of Israel and its enemies in the Middle East, Ukraine and Russia, proves. In each conflict, monuments, religious landmarks and ancient sites (cultural properties defined by The Hague as “immovable” sites of great historical value) have been threatened, damaged or outright destroyed to varying degrees. That said, UNESCO, the cultural arm of the United Nations, has had a busy year.
In November, UNESCO reported that 468 sites had been damaged since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, including 145 religious sites, 238 of “historic and/or artistic value” buildings and 32 museums. As of April, Ukraine’s cultural property losses amounted to US$2.5 billion, and financial losses were approximately US$3.5 billion.
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Additionally, there are reports that Russian forces have systematically looted Ukrainian museums, a war crime, with more than 15,000 pieces of Ukrainian art and artifacts reported missing. In April, Ukraine’s Kherson Art Museum discovered 100 paintings allegedly looted by Russian troops in a video filmed at a museum in annexed Crimea. The museum said the 100 works of art captured on camera likely represent “less than 1%” of art stolen by Russia from Ukraine since 2022.
A few weeks later, Ukraine also accused Russia TransformationTauric Chersonese Crimeaa UNESCO World Heritage Site (a designation intended to grant special protection) as a “Historic and Archaeological Park”, and appeal petitioned the United Nations to protect the site and described its reconstruction as part of Russia’s plan to destroy Ukraine’s heritage.
in a ReportEvelina Kravchenko of the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine said Tauric Chersonese had been “disturbed” and “tens of thousands of artifacts” destroyed. “Some of it was picked up by locals from these dumps, both for personal storage and for sale on the black market,” Kravchenko said. “So soon we will see Chersonesos stuff in online auctions ”
In September, Sudan’s ongoing civil war affected its cultural heritage, with international media reporting reports of rampant looting and destruction. The northeast African country’s cultural institutions have been under threat since a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted into civil war, a conflict that has threatened nearly 25 million Sudanese civilians with displacement and starvation . The National Museum of Sudan in Khartoum and the M Bolheim Bioarchaeological Laboratory in Khartoum were both robbed by members of Reporters Without Borders. (Doctors Without Borders has previously denied the looting accusations and said when the conflict broke out in April 2023 that it was protecting cultural property; that statement was middle east eye.)
In July, the nonprofit Heritage of Peace reported that a number of cultural archives had been lost, including those from Omdurman’s Al-Ahlia University’s Mohammed Omar Bashir Center for Sudanese Studies and Abdul Qari’s Archives held by the M. Mirgani Center, which was in the process of digitizing its material history. The local labor movement.
Meanwhile, Israel’s ground and aerial assault on Gaza, which reaches its first anniversary this October, has claimed more than 200 cultural landmarks and historical sites, including mosques, churches, libraries and art institutions. In July, UNESCO designated ancient saint hilario monasteryalso known as Tell Umm Amirexist Gaza to its list of endangered locations. saint hilario monasteryIt is one of the oldest and most complex religious sites in the region, dating back to the 4th century AD and was home to the first monastic community in the Levant. It has been on the organization’s tentative heritage list since 2012, but given the dire circumstances, its confirmation is moving quickly.
“UNESCO is deeply concerned about the impact of the ongoing conflict on cultural heritage, particularly in the Gaza Strip,” the agency said in a statement at the time. “The organization urges all parties involved to strictly abide by international law, stressing that cultural property should not be targeted or used for military purposes as it is considered civilian infrastructure.”
Israel’s war in Gaza has killed more than 44,000 people, according to the local health ministry. Analysis by the United Nations Human Rights Office shows that 70% of war victims are women and children.
In September, Israel’s military campaign expanded into Lebanon when hundreds of pagers allegedly used by members of the militant group Hezbollah were detonated remotely across the country. Since then, following calls from Lebanese cultural professionals, UNESCO has added 34 cultural properties in Lebanon to its enhanced protection list, promising to provide them with the highest level of protection from attack. “Failure to comply with these provisions would constitute a ‘serious breach’ of the 1954 Hague Convention and may constitute grounds for prosecution,” the agency said in a statement in November.
The decision was made in emergency meeting The announcement by the Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of armed conflict follows Israeli air strikes on the ancient Lebanese cities of Baalbek and Tyre. These two cities are among six sites in Lebanon included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. That month, the Lebanese National News Agency report Israel struck the historic district of Tire, which is home to some of the best-preserved Roman ruins in the world, including a large hippodrome.
Other “cultural properties” that UNESCO has pledged to increase protection include Beirut’s Nicolas Ibrahim Sursok Museum, which has been closed due to conflict, Beirut’s National Museum and the Temple of Majdel Anjar, a temple dating back to 41 AD The main Roman temple, located in Western Bekaa.
Although Israel and Lebanon reached a ceasefire agreement on November 27, Israel has since been accused of violating the agreement at least 129 times. Entering 2025, Sudan, Palestine and Ukraine will still be at war. The cultural heritage of these countries remains at risk.
