The World Government Summit … Minister of Culture and UNESCO Director review international efforts to restore the effects of Mosul
Dubai, February 13/ WAM/ The World Government Summit, 2025, hosted qualitative sessions and forums that included various fields of government work, including a session on the closing day entitled “How do culture revive cities after crises?” His Excellency Sheikh Salem bin Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of Culture, and His Excellency Audrey Azoulay, Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) spoke.
The session discussed a project to revive the spirit of the city of Mosul after the destruction in 2017 and the efforts of the Emirates with a group of international actors in the restoration and preservation of this cultural heritage and the preservation of pluralism in this city.
His Excellency Sheikh Salem bin Khalid Al Qasimi talked about this international cultural project, which the UAE was the largest financier, through his personal experience as a follower of this file, when he was the permanent delegate of the UAE to UNESCO in Paris, and he was coordinating these efforts, stressing that a city Mosul has a long history and includes many effects, and it has always been the point of connection and exchange between cultures and religions, so the UAE’s contribution was present to preserve this cultural wealth, and this ancient historical pluralism, which is not the first time that the UAE has made with such efforts, especially with regard to historical effects, has lost It carried out restoration work in the city of Jerusalem between the years 2002 and 2004, as well as the restoration of a group of archaeological mosques in Africa, and this is derived from the established UAE values and the legacy of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God bless him.
His Excellency Sheikh Salem bin Khalid Al Qasimi added that the restoration of the ancient city of Mosul and its various historical monuments, restoring the spirit and glow of the previous city, but also the most important thing is our investment in the city’s residents and the human element there, where thousands of craftsmen and professionals were trained in the areas of restoration, construction and maintenance of heritage landmarks, and this is an order Important in a rapidly polarized world, in which we need pluralism, openness, culture, building societies, empowering youth and preserving cultural heritage.
For her part, His Excellency Audrey Azoulay valued the role of the World Summit of Governments in raising the issues of cultural pluralism and the maintenance of human and historical heritage, and stressed the importance of talking about the Iraqi city of Mosul with historical symbolism, which was subjected to a comprehensive destruction, which included its mosques and churches due to the “ISIS” attacks, and the war against culture and against Women and the spirit of the city, which was like her name, is connected and bridges of civilization and pluralism.
She added that a global gift occurred to the reconstruction of the old city, and the UAE was the first supporter to restore all these monuments, and in 2018 the UAE joined the “UNESCO” initiative to “revive the spirit of Mosul”, which aims to rebuild the cultural heritage of the city after the destruction that affected it, and it was The largest partner and supporter, followed by the European Union, and a group of partners, presented a model on the support of international efforts in preserving the cultural and humanitarian heritage, where the historical landmarks of Mosul have been rehabilitated and rebuilt such as the Al -Nuri Mosque and the Lighthouse of Al -Hadba, the pure church and the hour “and other monuments.
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