Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din

Before the conflict:

• Management System/Management Plan (Lack of conservation and/or management plans)
• Management activities (Inappropriate restoration works)
• Housing (Urban encroachment)
• Quarrying (Exploitation of quarries within the perimeter of World Heritage properties)

Since 2011:

• Armed conflict (destruction and damage due to the armed conflict)
• Major visitor accommodation and associated infrastructure (cable car project at Qal’at Salah El-Din) (issue resolved)
• Earthquake

Destruction as well as ascertained and potential threats consequent to the armed conflict in Syria that started in March 2011

Adopted, see https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/8207/

Adopted, see https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/8207/

Adopted by the World Heritage Committee, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/8207 and https://whc.unesco.org/document/199648 

Total amount: 200,000 Euros by the Italian Government; for built, movable and intangible heritage: 2.46 million Euros by the European Union, USD 170,000 by the Flemish Government, 63,000 Euros by the Austrian Government, USD 200,000 by the German Government; for cultural heritage under conflict: USD 200,000 by the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage in Bahrain; USD 139,609 from the World Heritage Fund budget line dedicated to properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

On 11 January 2024, the State Party submitted state of conservation reports for six Syrian World Heritage properties, which are available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1229/documents/, and include updated information on progress and challenges with conservation issues at the property, as follows:

• At Crac des Chevaliers, and with the support of the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch, through the Saint Ephrem Patriarchal Development Committee, restoration and reconstruction of the northern façade of the southern stable (northern wall overlooking the moat) has been undertaken. Other works have been carried out such as the restoration of a door lintel in the inner castle and an entrance pillar at the hall of the knights. The vault of the cistern in the inner courtyard, identified as a priority in the ‘First phase of the Master Plan for the site of Crac des Chevaliers’ report is also being restored and reconstructed;
• The area previously excavated in the dormitories has been secured by guardrails;
• The Syrian-Hungarian mission stabilized the frescoes in the chapel and removed the scaffolding (thereby completing the final phase of these works);
• Information on the impacts of the February 2023 earthquake at both castles is provided. At Crac des Chevaliers, the wall connecting the Commander’s and the Knights’ Towers has partially collapsed, preexisting cracks between Towers no.101 and no.114 (Eastern entrance) have widened and other cracks appeared on the arched entrance of Tower no.146, as well as on the eastern wall adjacent to the chapel. The upper section of Bint al-Malik Tower partially collapsed and is still at risk, stones collapsed at Tower no.137 north of al-Zahir Baybars Tower and at the Commander’s Tower, causing structural risks. At Qal’at Salah El-Din, where structures were already impacted by continuous degradation, cracks appeared in the eastern defense wall, at the defense wall located north of the Royal Tower, and existing cracks widened and/or extended;
• Identifying funding for the emergency rehabilitation work as well as for structural maintenance remains a challenge.

Following the online workshop of 12 April 2023, organized to exchange on the restoration of the stable and counterscarp walls, which was considered to be the most urgent priority owing to structural instability, further information and documentation were exchanged with the State Party, including a technical review by ICOMOS provided in June 2023. The review concluded that the presented documents were informative and compelling and the need for physical intervention was acknowledged, but ICOMOS advised that the works should be subject to a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) as the intervention extends beyond regular conservation and the optimal approach should be identified. Due to the limited timeframe for funds allocated to implementation, the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM) decided to proceed with the work taking into consideration the ICOMOS recommendations.

In parallel to the execution of works, training on the elaboration of HIAs in accordance with the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context was delivered by an international expert, taking the stable wall project as a case study. While regretting that the HIA was not submitted before the implementation of the project, the Committee could welcome the opportunity provided for reinforced dialogue with the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies, as well as the capacity building sessions which support application of the methodology at World Heritage sites in Syria in future. A post-works HIA for the stable and counterscarp project and HIAs for other major interventions at the monument, are being prepared and will be submitted to the World Heritage Centre.

The State Party did not submit an updated Minor Boundary Modification proposal that would take into consideration the recommendations of Decision 45 COM 8B.67, but could therefore be encouraged to provide this to the World Heritage Centre by 1 February 2025.

The State Party is also encouraged to continue engaging in strategic partnerships and to seek further international support and funding in order to progress in the implementation of the corrective measures at both component sites of the property.

Some progress has been made towards the implementation of the corrective measures required to achieve the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR). However, the State Party report does not include either a systematic update on progress with the adopted corrective measures and achievement of the DSOCR, or a specific response to each of the requests made by the Committee in Decision 45 COM 7A.44. The State Party should be encouraged and requested to report to the World Heritage Centre by providing a table that sets out evidence for each corrective measure that has been implemented. The State Party should also be reminded of the need to address and report on the Committee’s Decisions.

It remains crucial that the invited joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM Reactive Monitoring mission take place as soon as the situation allows, to enable a comprehensive assessment of the state of conservation of the property.