Five Years of ALIPH

EARLY 2010s

Massive destruction of cultural heritage in several countries in the Sahel and the Middle East due to conflict and terrorism

2015

NOVEMBER

Publication of “50 French proposals to protect the heritage of humanity” by Jean-Luc Martinez, President-Director of the Musée du Louvre (2013-2021)

2-3 DECEMBER

International conference on Safeguarding Cultural Heritage in Conflict Areas and the adoption of the Declaration on heritage at risk in the context of armed conflicts in Abu Dhabi

8 MARCH

The International alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas (ALIPH) is created in Geneva

20 MARCH

The first International Donors’ Conference is held at the Musée du Louvre, Paris

24 MARCH

UN Security Council adopts Resolution 2347 on the protection of heritage

11 OCTOBER

ALIPH headquarter agreement is signed with the Swiss Federal Council

18 JUNE

First five heritage protection projects in conflict zones are adopted by the Foundation Board, including the rehabilitation of the Mosul Museum, the Mar Behnam Monastery (Iraq), and the Tomb of Askia in Gao (Mali)

SEPTEMBER

ALIPH Secretariat is established in Geneva

NOVEMBER

First mission to Baghdad, Iraq is conducted by ALIPH Secretariat

15 JANUARY

First Call for Projects is announced and the ALIPH website is launched

JUNE

First mission to Mosul, Iraq is conducted by ALIPH Secretariat

24 JUNE

Fourteen new projects are adopted by the Foundation Board under the First Call for Projects, including the rehabilitation of Tutunji House and several religious sites in Mosul (known collectively as the “Mosul Mosaic”), the protection of the Minaret of Jam (UNESCO) in Afghanistan, and the restoration of the Raqqa Museum in North-East Syria

11 OCTOBER

UNESCO and ALIPH sign a Memorandum of Understanding to develop their cooperation

17 DECEMBER

Twenty new projects are adopted by the Foundation Board under the Second Call for Projects, including the preservation of the written heritage of the Khalidi Library in Jerusalem, the rehabilitation of the Dhamar Museum in Yemen, and the protection of several iconic archaeological sites in Sudan

FEBRUARY

An emergency measure financed by ALIPH to secure the scultpures of Hatra, an ancient city in Iraq, is completed

APRIL

COVID-19 Emergency Plan is announced, allocating an initial USD 1 million to protect cultural heritage workers, which is then increased to USD 2 million

SEPTEMBER

Mission to Beirut undertaken by the ALIPH Secretariat alongside teams from ICOM and ICOMOS

MARCH

First mission to Mali undertaken by the ALIPH Secretariat to launch the rehabilitation of the Tomb of Askia in Gao alongside Malian authorities and the local community

AUGUST

Several days after the Beirut Blast, USD 5 million is allocated to stabilize and rehabilitate the cultural heritage damaged in the Lebanese capital

OCTOBER

An emergency project financed by ALIPH to protect the collection of the Museum of Civilization of Côte d’Ivoire in Abidjan is completed

22 OCTOBER

Twenty-nine new projects are adopted by the Foundation Board under the Third Call for Projects, including the protection of collections of several museums in Yemen, the combat against illicit trafficking of cultural goods in North-East Syria, and the rehabilitation of the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo

10 DECEMBER

United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and ALIPH sign a Memorandum of Understanding to develop their cooperation

JANUARY

An emergency project to stabilize the Arch of Ctesiphon, south of Baghdad, is adopted by ALIPH’s Foundation Board, upon the request of the Iraqi Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities

MARCH

First mission to Afghanistan undertaken by the ALIPH Secretaiat and launch of a project financed by ALIPH to rehabilitate Kabul’s Bala Hissar Citadel

23 APRIL

Expansion of Scientific Committee from six to ten members, all experts in the cultural heritage sector

14 DECEMBER

Twenty projects are adopted by the Foundation Board under the Fourth Call for Projects, including the fight against illicit trafficking and the reinforcement of several museums’ security in the Sahel region, support for emergency interventions in Yemen, and the development of the Palestinian Museum’s collections