Decision 46 COM 7A.28

Ancient City of Bosra (Syrian Arab Republic) (C 22bis)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7A,
2. Recalling Decisions 45 COM 7A.41 and 45 COM 7A.46 adopted at its extended 45th session (Riyadh, 2023),
3. Taking note of the conservation work carried out to the Citadel/Theatre and at Madrasa Abû al-Fidâ, encourages the State Party to develop a detailed conservation intervention methodology for buildings and monuments at the property, including principles and technical requirements, and to submit it to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies before finalisation;
4. Reiterates its previous requests to the State Party to submit information on any proposed project that may have an impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property to the World Heritage Centre for examination by the Advisory Bodies before making any decisions that would be difficult to reverse, and before the commencement of work, along with Heritage Impact Assessments, which should follow the methodology of the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context, in conformity with paragraphs 118bis and 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
5. Welcomes the infrastructure work undertaken to contribute to the revival of the property and the return of inhabitants;
6. Acknowledging the financial and human resource challenge facing the property, recalls that the site management plan and the master plan remain key instruments for the adequate conservation and management, as well as decision-making on restoration and sustainable development, and also encourages the State Party to consider as a priority the initiation of steps for the development of a site management plan, addressing principles and strategies for the management of the property;
7. Also reiterates its appeal to all Member States of UNESCO to cooperate in the fight against the illicit trafficking of cultural heritage coming from Syria as per the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 2199 of February 2015, and 2347 of March 2017;
8. Calls again on all States Parties to support emergency safeguarding and recovery measures;
9. Further encourages the State Party to pursue the elaboration of the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR), and a set of correctives measures, for potential examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 47th session;
10. Further reiterates the need for the invited joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM Reactive Monitoring mission to be carried out as soon as the situation allows, in order to proceed with a comprehensive assessment of the state of conservation of the property;
11. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2025, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 47th session;
12. Decides to retain Ancient City of Bosra (Syrian Arab Republic) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.