In Iran, 29 sites have been classified as UNESCO World Heritage sites. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization estimates that at least 4 of them have suffered heavy damage since the beginning of hostilities. These include the Persian garden, the Jameh Mosque in Isfahan, the Khorramabad Valley with its prehistoric sites, and the Golestan Palace in Tehran. However, assessing the extent of the damage is currently very complicated, and other historical monuments could also have been affected.
“Ce qu’on a mis des siècles à bâtir, détruit en 5 minutes”
From Paris, the director of the World Heritage Center at UNESCO, Lazare Eloundou Assomo, laments these destructions: “Broken structures, completely destroyed glass decorations, which means that even for the reconstruction it will take years. What we have built over centuries, in 5 minutes, 10 minutes, they can be destroyed and it will always take time to restore.”
However, these sites are true treasures of world heritage. For example, the Golestan Palace holds priceless works at risk, as Lazare Eloundou Assomo points out: “A particular, extraordinary Persian know-how. It is sometimes called the little Versailles, for the quality of its decorations, its very important palatial architecture from the very rich Persian period.”
An evaluation of the damage is very laborious. Mapping the destructions precisely is very complicated. Moreover, other monuments may have also been affected. “There has been no field mission, we rely on information that is mainly both photos and our satellite images showing the state of the damage. A very precise evaluation on the ground will be really necessary to understand the extent of the damage. But we are very concerned about the state of degradation of these 4 sites.”
And the director of the World Heritage Center stresses that Iran is not the only country affected by the degradation of remarkable historical sites: he lists 18 countries in the region concerned, for a total of 125 threatened monuments.
“Des actions de mises à l’abris des collections ont existé”
On site, the race against time has begun to try to secure the works of art displayed in museums. Lazare Eloundou Assomo ensures: “Iranian professionals are still well trained in these issues of museum management and protection. And so we know, according to the first information, that these actions to protect collections have existed. Some of these Iranian professionals have been trained by UNESCO to be able to carry out urgent actions to safeguard collections and heritage. Communities have always contributed to preserving these sites for a long time. Site managers, professionals work on their management, on their preservation, with the authorities of the different countries. And we continue to work with them, to communicate with them regularly for information.”
“Ne pas utiliser ces sites comme cible particulière”
The director of the World Heritage Center emphasizes that these sites should not be targeted by belligerents, to whom UNESCO has written: “Many of these countries, and most of them, are signatories to UNESCO conventions and are obliged to implement them. They must therefore protect the sites and not use them as a particular target.”
For all that, not explicitly targeting them is not enough to ensure their preservation: “It is important to raise awareness about the protection of these sites because even if the sites are destroyed as collateral damage, it remains a destruction of heritage that will affect the lives of communities, the understanding of history, the riches of civilizations of different countries, etc. Hence UNESCO’s role in raising awareness for the preservation and protection of heritage, so that these sites do not fall victim to hostilities.”
