The General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, through its Social Affairs Sector (Culture Department), is convening the eighth meeting of the International Committee for the Preservation of Heritage on 4 December at the headquarters of the General Secretariat. The meeting gathers representatives from the Ministry of Culture of the State of Palestine, the Arab Parliament, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Institute of Arab Manuscripts, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Arab Council of the General Union of Arab Archaeologists, the Arab Society for Islamic Civilisation and Arts, and various departments within the League of Arab States, including the Social Affairs Sector and the Palestine and Occupied Arab Territories Sector.
The session resumes its work under the guidance of His Excellency Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, in accordance with the recommendations of the 2024 Arab Cultural Heritage Day. Held under the theme Protecting the Heritage of Palestine, the event underscored solidarity with the Gaza Strip in the wake of the catastrophic destruction, obliteration, and cultural violations perpetrated by the brutal occupation since October 2023.
Her Excellency Dr. Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, Assistant Secretary-General and head of the Social Affairs Sector, emphasised that the General Secretariat prioritised the inclusion of Palestinian heritage preservation in the Committee’s agenda. The programme includes initiatives such as the preparation of an Encyclopaedia of Arab Cultural Heritage, complemented by a dedicated document on Palestinian cultural heritage, and the compilation of a comprehensive bibliography of works addressing Palestinian heritage, alongside other strategic measures to safeguard and promote heritage in the Arab world.
