UNESCO to add several heritage sites to ‘in danger’ list

UNESCO member states will vote at a meeting in Busan, South Korea, on new additions to the World Heritage and World Heritage in Danger lists. The agenda includes fast‑tracking three previously unlisted sites: the archaeological site of Sebastia in the Israeli‑occupied West Bank, five castles in south Lebanon (including the Crusader fortress of Beaufort Castle), and the Boma‑Badingilo grassland and woodland savannahs in South Sudan, all threatened by conflict or climate change. UNESCO’s World Heritage Center director Lazare Eloundou Assomo said, “We may not have the means to deploy peacekeepers… but we can send a message to the entire world,” and added that protecting heritage helps traumatized communities rebuild. About 1,200 sites are currently on the World Heritage list, which can boost tourism and unlock preservation funding. Additional candidates under discussion include Lebanon’s other war‑affected sites, Russia’s Lake Baikal, and several cultural locations in France, Brazil and Tunisia, though no final decisions have been made.