Ancient Christian monastery in Gaza Strip put on UNESCO's 'danger list' in India
NEW DELHI: An ancient Christian monastery in the Gaza Strip was recognised as a World Heritage Site in danger at a UNESCO meeting in New Delhi on Friday.
Founded around 340 AD by Saint Hilarion, the monastery is part of the Tell Umm Amer archaeological site in the Nusseirat refugee camp in the Deir al-Balah governorate of the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Permanent Delegation to UNESCO submitted the application in 2012, and the application was processed through an emergency procedure during the annual session of the World Heritage Committee.
Ambassador Munir Anastas, Palestinian permanent representative to the UN cultural agency, welcomed the inscription, saying it would give hope to Gaza residents amid ongoing Israeli attacks that have killed at least 40,000 people since October and destroyed much of the Palestinian territory's infrastructure.
“I send a message of hope to our people in Gaza who are fleeing the bombings. They have no shelter, no water, no food. And yet they are trying to protect their heritage, because this heritage is part of the memory and history of our people,” Anastas told Arab News on the sidelines of the UNESCO session.
The move was submitted by Belgium and supported by 18 other member states of the World Heritage Committee, which agreed to inscribe the Monastery Complex of St. Hilarion both on the World Heritage List and on the World Heritage in Danger List, under the emergency procedures laid down in the World Heritage Convention.
Under the terms of the agreement, the 195 States Parties, including Israel, are prohibited from directly or indirectly damaging the site and must cooperate to protect it.
“Once this site is inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger, all the countries that have joined the convention will be responsible for protecting and promoting the site,” Mounir said.
“And this is also another powerful message from the international community to our people in Gaza, that the international community has not forgotten you.”
St. Hilarion was from the Gaza area and is considered the father of Palestinian monasticism. His monastery was an important station at the crossroads of Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Mesopotamia and is associated with the monastic desert center phenomenon of the Byzantine period. It is also a testimony to Christianity in the Gaza area.
One of the oldest monasteries in the Middle East, the complex consists of two churches, a burial ground, a baptistery, a cemetery, a lecture hall and a refectory.
During Israel's 10-month bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at least 207 of the 320 archaeological sites and buildings of cultural and historical significance have been reduced to rubble or badly damaged.
These include the Orthodox Church of St. Porphyry, the third oldest church in the world, the 12th-century Great Omari Mosque, the nearby medieval Old City market of Al-Qisariya, the ancient port of Gaza, which dates back to 800 BC, and the Philistine cemetery, which dates back to the Bronze Age, 1550-1200 BC.
The destruction of many archaeological sites was detailed in a case brought by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice for the crime of genocide. The case claims that the mass killings and destruction of cultural heritage in Gaza demonstrate the Israeli leadership’s intent to destroy the Palestinian people and their cultural identity.
