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The Heritage Committee of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) announced on Sunday that one of the newest entries on the organization's list of global heritage sites is Tel a-Sultan in Jericho. The UNESCO member states decided that the tel will be considered a "Palestinian world heritage site." The decision was made in a vote that took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The UN clarified that there are Jewish and Christian sites near the site that are not included in the list - but there is a value to protect them. Tel a-Sultan, also known as Tel Jericho,...

Hagia Sophia to Be Turned Into Mosque in Response to US Shift on Golan - Erdogan ANKARA (Sputnik) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday he planned to turn landmark Hagia Sophia, a former Greek Orthodox cathedral in Istanbul, into a mosque after this month’s elections in response to the US policy shift on the Golan Heights. "After municipal elections, it [temple] will be converted back into a mosque from a museum. As US president Trump declares Jerusalem the capital of Israel and the Golan Heights an Israeli territory, Turkey will give an adequate response as the rotating chair...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed converting the fabled Hagia Sophia into a mosque on Sunday. The Greek government responded with anger on Monday, pointing out that the Hagia Sophia was the seat of Greek Orthodox Christianity for centuries and has been designated a World Heritage Site by the United Nations. Erdogan said during a television interview on Sunday that the Hagia Sophia might be “reverted” into a mosque, referring to the structure’s status as a mosque following the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453 A.D. The Hagia Sophia was constructed as a relatively modest Greek Orthodox church in 360,...

In a possible development that would have Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, and William Travis rolling in their graves, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is considering designating the Alamo a World Heritage Site. Such a designation brings along a myriad of restrictions, and although proponents of the designation, such as San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, insist that the State of Texas would still have authority over the site, many serious concerns of the people of Texas are not being addressed. For one thing, such a designation establishes a "buffer zone" of some 4,500 acres around the site,...

SASEBO NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy minesweeper that got stuck on a reef off the coast of the Philippines will have to be dismantled and removed in sections, a process that is expected to take over a month, Navy officials said Wednesday. The salvage plan is still under review by the Philippine Coast Guard, but it likely means the end for the 23-year-old USS Guardian. “Our naval architecture and salvage experts have reviewed all possible alternatives, and our only supportable option is to dismantle the damaged ship and remove it in sections,” Pacific Fleet spokesman Lt. Anthony Falvo wrote...

Seven years ago, it was a place of serene contemplation. Now it is a vast, gaping chasm, filled with dust, noise and what looks like rubble, with signs warning that hard hats must be worn. This is the niche which used to house the one of the world's tallest Buddhas - 55 metres high. In it you can still see slight swellings where its feet used to be, and ghostly traces of where the head and neck were. In the early morning light, a huge bulldozer shifts massive blocks of the destroyed colossus, already labelled and classified, into undercover storage...