"Cultural heritage sites around the world are increasingly becoming the collateral victims of both natural disasters and armed conflicts."
Press release of 25 May 2012
The national Museum of Baghdad or Cairo, Syrian mosaics or spiritual collections of Timbuktu, are just some of the cultural properties imperiled. Such heritage holds immeasurable value for their communities not only to local communities, but to humanity as a whole.
The Organization deploys field missions to assess damage and prepare for emergency by mobilizing international cooperation. This is done in keeping with UNESCO’s conventions on the protection of tangible heritage from hazards, including armed conflict and illicit trafficking.