UNESCO Statements
Statements by UNESCO Director-General
- 5 November 2015 - Director-General and the Minister of Education of Iraq call for increased support for Internally Displaced Populations and mobilization to combat Illicit Trafficking
- 28 May 2015 - "Saving the cultural heritage of Iraq"- Director-General welcomes Adoption of the UN General Assembly Resolution
- 27 April 2015 - "Culture stands on the front-line of conflict -- it should be at the front-line of peace building,” Director-General states to UN Security Council
- 13 April 2015 - UNESCO Director General condemns destruction at Nimrud
- 28 March 2015 - Director-General meets with Iraqi Prime Minister
- 18 March 2015 - "We stand together" to protect Iraq's cultural heritage, says French President with UNESCO Director-General
- 11 March 2015 - UNESCO mobilizes the international community to end the cultural cleansing in Iraq
- 7 March 2015 - "Destruction of Hatra marks a turning point in the cultural cleansing underway in Iraq" say Heads of UNESCO and ISESCO
UN SEC COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS
- 12 February 2015 - the United Nations Security Council adopted the Resolution 2199 that condemns the destruction of cultural heritage and adopts legally-binding measures to counter illicit trafficking of antiquities and cultural objects from Iraq and Syria.
- November 2014 - The Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team of the UN Security Council, publishes the report S/2014/815 on 14 November 2014, on the threat posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and the Al-Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant, following the 29 October report S/2014/770 on Al-Qaida and associated individuals and entities. Specifically, the November report (S/2014/815) highlights the cooperation between UNESCO and the Sanctions Monitoring Team during the elaboration of the report, and recommends the adoption of resolution 2199, based on the provisions of the 2003 Resolution 1483, imposing a ban on trade of Iraqi cultural heritage.
- 22 May 2003 - Further to the measures taken by the United States and in application of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1483, the UNESCO Secretariat again reminded all its Member States of the necessity to fight against illicit trafficking and looting of Iraqi cultural property.
Meetings at UNESCO
UNESCO brings together key partners to step up safeguarding of Iraqi and Syrian Cultural Heritage
High Level Meeting at UNESCO Headquarters on 1 April 2015
UNESCO's key partners in protection of cultural heritage today agreed to strengthen cooperation and exchange of information in their efforts to improve safeguarding of this heritage in Syria and Iraq.
The high level meeting was convened by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova to map out the effective implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2199, adopted on 12 February.
- Address by the UNESCO Director-General, Ms Irina Bokova on the occasion of the High Level Meeting (PDF)
- Legal study on the protection of cultural heritage through the resolutions of the Security Council of the United Nations, by Vincent Négri, legal expert and researcher at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) PDF: EN | FR
- Web article on the High Level Meeting
Heritage and Cultural Diversity at Risk in Iraq and Syria
High-level meeting at UNESCO Headquarters on 3 December 2014
UNESCO is organizing an International Conference on the protection of cultural heritage and the respect of cultural diversity in Iraq and Syria. The goal of the Conference is to sensitize decision-makers, humanitarian aid workers as well as those in the world of culture on the critical role of culture within conflicts as well as on the need to better integrate the cultural dimension into security, conflict resolution, humanitarian aid and development policies. More
Executive Board 195th Session
October 2014 - 195th Session of the Executive Board
- Protection of Iraqi Heritage - Item 31 of the provisional agenda (document 195 EX/31)
- Comments by the Director-General on Item 31: Protection of Iraqi Heritage (document 195 EX/DG.INF)
Consultation Meeting July 2014
A consultation meeting was held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 17 July to develop an Emergency Response Action Plan to safeguard Iraq’s rich and diverse cultural heritage.
- Press release - 17 July 2014 - Emergency Response Action Plan to Safeguard Iraqi Heritage
Roundtable on Iraqi Archaeological Heritage
17 October 2012 - UNESCO Headquarters - Paris, France
- UNESCO hosted an open discussion roundtable entitled "Safeguarding Iraqi Archaeological Heritage: Current Challenges and Achievements"
- More information (PDF)
The sculpture was stolen in Baghdad in April 2003, INTERPOL ref. n° 2003/22019-1.4 © INTERPOL