Damascus Hosts Workshop on “Reconstruction and Revival of Historical Cities After Crises”

“Reconstruction and Revival of Historical Cities After Crises” is the banner of a workshop kicked off Tuesday by Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Damascus.

The two-day workshop aims to exchange experiences in order to describe the current situation of monuments in Syria and to draw up a plan for reconstruction after crises, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

The agency quoted Director of Museums Affairs in the DGAM Nazir Awad as saying that several workshops and activities were held by the DGAM within the framework of the Syrian heritage management during the crisis.

 “Experts in reconstruction and management of historical cities after crises plus representatives of Awqaf and Tourism Ministries and Faculty of Architecture in Damascus University and UNESCO’s office in Beirut are taking part in the workshop,” Awad added, hoping that the participants will reach recommendations that help repair damaged monuments in Syria.

On his part, Secretary General of the National Committee of UNESCO Nidal Hassan referred to the great cooperation between the committee, national institutions, UNESCO and its regional offices in helping Syrian teams do their duties in accordance with international standards.

“The workshop’s outcomes will  be very important to achieve safety and sustainability in Syrian historical sites,” Hassan said, stressing the need to enhance constructive dialogue between archaeologists.

Head of Cultural Sector at UNESCO in Beirut Josef Kridi said that the workshop is an invitation to heritage officials to exchange experiences, including Syrian and Lebanese experts’ experiences.

The heritage officials will be briefed on documentary works made by the DGAM for damaged sites in Aleppo, Homs and Palmyra, according to Director of  Antiquities in Damascus Countryside Mahmod Hammod.

The DGAM has worked all around the clock to document damage caused by foreign-backed terror war being waged on the country.

There are 10.000 archeological sites in Syria, 300 of them have been damaged since the start of the terrorist war on Syria, Dr. Abdulkarim told the French Le Figaro newspaper in 2015.

Since 2011, Syria has faced a foreign-backed terror war targeting its army, people, civilization and infrastructures in accordance with US-Zionist plot that aims to fragment the region and to have hegemony over its wealth.

Basma Qaddour