by Khaled Osaily

Hebron (Al-Khalil) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and is sacred to Muslims, Christians, and Jews. Its outstanding universal values are symbolised by the Ibrahimi Mosque, the burial place of the prophets AbrahamIbrahim, Isaac, Jacob, and their wives.

Numerous ancient monuments and buildings have been preserved, bearing witness to a rich and prosperous past. As well as a pilgrimage site for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Hebron serves as an economic and cultural centre at the crossroads between southern Palestine, Sinai, eastern Jordan, and the Arabian Peninsula. Its history and architecture are the legacy of these mixed cultures.

The Haram al-Ibrahimi, principal monument of the Old City, quickly became a focal point of the city after the first Islamic Period (Umayyad Period), similar to the Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem. Today, the historic centre is dominated by the Mamluk architectural style, with influences from the subsequent Ottoman Period. Hebron is one of the rare Islamic cities to have faithfully preserved its ancient character, which can be clearly seen by any visitor.

To protect this universal value, Hebron Municipality started the preparatory work for the inscription of the Old City of Hebron on the World Heritage List. This is the first such initiative in Palestine and represents a challenge to prove the cultural significance of Hebron at international, Islamic, Arab, and local levels. This initiative has the full support of the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Dr. Salam Fayyad.

Hebron Municipality has made huge efforts toward realising this goal. Our international lobbying took us to the 3rd Venice Conference of Local Authorities of Europe, which submitted a unanimous recommendation calling for Hebron to be recognised as a world heritage site. The conference established an international committee to work on inscribing Hebron on the World Heritage List and supporting efforts were made to obtain UNESCO’s official approval in this regard. The recommendation was endorsed during the Conference of Local Authorities of Europe held in Istanbul in 2008.

Hebron was also granted membership in the Cultural Committee of COPPEM (Standing Committee for the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership of Local and Regional Authorities) at the Palermo Conference in 2009.

In October 2009, Hebron Municipality, in cooperation with Belfort and Arcueil municipalities in France, announced the launch of the International Committee for the Preservation and Promotion of the Old City of Hebron. The committee, officially created in Arcueil and Paris on 21 and 22 October 2009, defends the universality of the cultural heritage of the Old City through promotional actions and supporting its candidacy for the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The committee established an official website (www.hebronheritage.com) for the campaign, part of a worldwide appeal that aims to gather members and raise awareness among international institutions and public opinion. Boutros Boutros Ghali, former UN Secretary General, Luisa Morgantini, former Vice-President of the European Parliament, and Federico Mayor Zaragoza, former Director General of UNESCO, joined the campaign together with many intellectuals, architects, and journalists. Hebron Municipality also received support letters from Istanbul, Geneva, and many other local authorities all over the world.

On 13 November 2010, the International Committee for the Preservation and Promotion of the Old City of Hebron contributed to a special event dedicated to the Old City of Hebron in Belfort, France. A documentary filmed inside the Hebron H2 zone and produced by Victor Lassalle, journalist member of the committee, was projected to show the Occupation and its consequences on Palestinian daily life and on the heritage of the Old City.

Hebron Municipality continued its international activities to gather support for the project in Doha, Qatar, where the twelfth conference of the Organization of Islamic Capitals and Cities” was held in May 2010. The main recommendations of the conference were to support the initiative to inscribe the Old City of Hebron on the World Heritage List and to reaffirm the Arab/Islamic identity of Jerusalem, Hebron, and other Palestinian cities.

In April 2010, the Union of Municipalities of the Marmara Region (Turkey) also pledged its support for Hebron’s claim.

On the technical level, Hebron Municipality prepared the Nomination File according to the format and standards defined by the World Heritage Committee and under the supervision of two international experts, Dr. Jade Tabet, the former representative of Lebanon on the World Heritage Committee, and Giovanni Fontana, a heritage expert at UNESCO – Palestine.

Hebron Municipality submitted the Nomination File to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities to begin the process. The file includes a description of the Old City, including historical documentation of its components and plans to preserve and manage the site in the future. It was prepared in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and the Hebron Rehabilitation Committee, the three partners which form the the Hebron Cultural Heritage Preservation Council. The council is responsible for managing Hebron’s Old City in the administrative, technical, and financial fields as well as for managing, planning, monitoring, and implementing preservation and development processes in cooperation with all related governmental and non-governmental agencies.

In Hebron Municipality we believe that community participation is a key component of the development process and the preservation of the heritage of the Old City of Hebron, which is essential for successful implementation of the plan. Achieving this will create an effective and enduring dialogue between the decision makers and the community in order to take better decisions. Moreover, seeking additional resources, increasing trust, and satisfying public demands will lead to more effective implementation policies. Furthermore, community participation will increase public awareness about the cultural and historical values in the Old City and make everybody a partner in the preservation process.

Hebron Municipality holds regular workshops and meetings with the local community. Promotional programmes are implemented to ensure active community participation in preserving the Old City and helping to achieve our shared vision: To highlight the cultural, economic, and social potential of Hebron’s Old City as interactive and interrelated assets that embody traditional life.

Recreating the traditional economic activities, rebuilding the social profile, enhancing the quality of life, creating new economic sources, and controlling growth according to a conservation plan will ensure the efficient use and beneficial growth of Hebron’s Old City.

Khaled Osaily is the mayor of Hebron, a position he has held since 2007. He is also chairman of Osaily General Trading and Contracting Company and the National Aluminum and Profile Company, vice-chairman of the Arab Palestinian Investment Company, and a director of Gaza Power Generating Company, among others.