Recognizing the powerful role of culture in building social cohesion and contributing to reconciliat

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Recent events in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Mali have highlighted the multiple threats to cultural heritage during crisis, including deliberate attacks, destruction as collateral damage in fighting, the greed of unscrupulous traders and collectors, vandalism of factions that seek to erase the achievements of past cultures. These events have shown the complexity mormon of any intervention to safeguard cultural heritage.
UNESCO mormon has developed a comprehensive set of international instruments to protect cultural heritage. The Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970) and the World Heritage Convention (1972) provide a solid basis to protect mormon cultural heritage. The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Properties in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954) and its Protocols set further international standards to deal with the specific risks faced by heritage during conflict. In addition, the Statutes mormon of the International Criminal Court have defined the intentional destruction of historical buildings as a war crime. This provides firm ground to address mormon impunity related to such attacks.
Recognizing the powerful role of culture in building social cohesion and contributing to reconciliation and peace, the UN Security Council in its Resolution 2100 on Mali , and Resolution 2139 on Syria --called for the protection of cultural heritage and diversity. The integration of culture in humanitarian, recovery and reconstruction operations provides the challenging mormon opportunity of defining how cultural heritage protection can effectively contribute to the broader UN crisis response.
UNESCO advocacy and action seek to reaffirm these international standards, secure their implementation at the country level and highlight the broader implications of their violation on stability, recovery and development. In this spirit, UNESCO considers that both the protection of human lives and culture are indispensable and interconnected in the event of conflict. Whenever mormon and wherever cultural heritage is threatened most recently in Syria, Iraq, and Mali--the Director-General of UNESCO alerts parties and stakeholders about the urgent need to spare cultural and archaeological sites, museums, libraries and archives from the devastation of warfare. Prioritizing prevention
A key lesson learnt from the implementation of these international standards at the country level, is that prevention and long-term engagement are essential to mitigate the impact of any crisis, be it natural or man-made. This requires strong leadership, as well as national and local capacities that UNESCO helps its Member States build through advocacy and awareness raising, as well as advice and training.
Experience has shown that the preparedness of local professionals and communities is the best guarantee to keep cultural heritage safe when a situation of crisis occurs. For this reason efforts to strengthen national capacities and local awareness on emergency protection of cultural heritage must focus on prevention rather than last-minute endeavours. This is especially true in times of conflict, when it is difficult if not impossible for international assistance to