Italy, one of the main donors for the preservation of Lebanon's cultural heritage, has expressed great concern over the attacks on areas near the Baalbeck archaeological site. This was reported by the Italian Embassy in Beirut, according to which Israeli raids in recent days have, among other things, damaged the archaeological site's visitor centre, conceived as part of the restoration and redevelopment project carried out with Italian funds.
The Baalbek site, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, is located, as the crow flies, about 65 km east of Beirut and contains the remains of several Roman temples dating back to the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD.
After an appeal to Unesco by 100 Lebanese MPs calling for the protection of Lebanese archaeological sites, the UN organisation for Science, Education and Culture scheduled an extraordinary meeting for 18 November to put in place ''enhanced provisional protection'' of Lebanese sites threatened by Israeli raids against Hezbollah.
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