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Timbuktu, Mali
Photograph by Bruno Cossa, Grand Tour/Corbis
People walk by the Djinguereber Mosque in Timbuktu, Mali, which, along with four other sites, was recently added to the UNESCO List of World Heritage in Danger.
Founded toward the end of the 5th century A.D. as a humble market village, Timbuktu became an important intellectual and spiritual center under the country's Askia dynasty toward the end of the 15th century.
"Danger listing attempts to draw attention to problems with particular sites to improve their management," said UNESCO spokesperson Roni Amelan.
"Often, it can involve asking for international assistance or the sharing of expertise."
The World Heritage Committee's decision to add Timbuktu to the danger list reflects growing international concerns about the looting and destruction of its historical sites after the city was taken over earlier this year by the armed groups MLNA and Ansar Dine.
According to Voice of America, Ansar Dine said the shrines at Timbuktu are idolatrous and un-Islamic.
In June, UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova expressed dismay over reports that three sacred tombs at Timbuktu had been destroyed.
"There is no justification for such wanton destruction," Bokova said in a statement, "and I call on all parties engaged in the conflict to stop these terrible and irreversible acts."
(Check out National Geographic Traveler's World Heritage Site guides.)
—Ker Than
July 6, 2012
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Church of the Nativity, West Bank
Photograph by Remi Benali, Corbis
Shafts of sunlight illuminate the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, where Christian scholars believe Jesus Christ was born.
Located on the West Bank of the Palestinian territories, the church was simultaneously inscripted into UNESCO's List of World Heritage and the List of World Heritage in Danger this year. It was added to the latter list because of concerns of damages caused by water leaks.
The church is the first site to be nominated by the Palestinian territories for inclusion to the List of World Heritage since they were granted full membership in UNESCO last year.
The church's listing is strongly opposed by Israel and the United States, who worry the acceptance will be viewed as a recognition by UNESCO of the Palestinian territories' statehood in the absence of an agreement with Israel.
"This is proof that UNESCO is motivated by political and not cultural considerations," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
(See pictures of Bethlehem in National Geographic magazine.)
July 6, 2012
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Liverpool Maritime Mercantile, England
Photograph by Seppo Olkinuora, Avecphoto
The Cunard Building and docked ships are reflected in the calm waters of Pier Head in Liverpool, England. Pier Head is part of the Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was added to the danger list this year.
The site, which has been on the World Heritage List since 2004, was inscripted to the Danger list this year due to concerns about the proposed construction of Liverpool Waters, a massive redevelopment of the historic docklands north of the city center.
The World Heritage Committee worries that the development will extend the city center significantly and alter its skyline and profile.
Liverpool was one of the world's major trading centers in the 18th and 19th centuries and played an important role in the growth of the British Empire, according to UNESCO.
Inscription to the danger list does not include any financial aid, UNESCO's Amelan added. "UNESCO has very limited funds," he added.
"On the other hand, being on the danger list and having the World Heritage Committee address concerns and coordinate efforts for the preservation of sites can often work as [an] impetus that helps countries raise money."
(Take our World Heritage quiz.)
July 6, 2012
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Portobelo, Panama
Photograph by Alfredo Maiquez
A crumbling lookout post and a rusted cannon at the colonial fortress of Santiago in Portobelo, Panama, show clear signs of neglect in an undated picture.
The World Heritage committee, which met in St. Petersburg, Russia, this week, voted to include the forts at Portobelo and San Lorenzo—which are considered excellent examples of 17th- and 18th-century Panamanian military architecture—to the List of World Heritage in Danger this year.
Originally inscripted to the List of World Heritage in 1980, the Portobelo-San Lorenzo site is "deteriorating at a rate which could undermine the outstanding universal value for which it was inscribed," UNESCO said in a statement.
The committee also called on Panama to undertake a risk assessment for structures at the site and to reinforce its walls, batteries, and platforms.
Since every World Heritage Site is different, the time each site spends on the danger list can vary enormously, said UNESCO's Amelan.
"Everything has to be addressed on a case-by-case basis because each site is unique and has its own unique set of problems," he said.
(See National Geographic Traveler's best tours in Central and South America for 2012.)
July 6, 2012
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Tomb of Askia, Mali
Photograph by Florin Iorganda, Reuters
Muslim pilgrims visit the Tomb of Askia in Gao in a 2007 picture.
The tomb was built in 1485 for the burial of Toure, the ancient king of the Songhai Empire. It's one of two sites in Mali that were added to UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger this year amidst concerns of vandalism by armed groups that have occupied the region.
UNESCO's Amelan said that of the five World Heritage sites inscripted to the Danger list this year, those in Mali are in the most imminent danger.
"Events happening [in Mali] are contrary to the whole spirit of the work that is done by UNESCO and by the World Heritage Committee," he said.
July 6, 2012
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Removed: Shalimar Gardens
Photograph by Christophe Boisvieux, Corbis
Visitors at the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore, Pakistan, pass each other as they walk across a narrow bridge.
The fort and garden were added to the World Heritage List in Danger in 2000 at the behest of the Pakistani government due to concerns about urban encroachment and maintenance, but Shalimar was removed from the list this year.
"Many of the site's monuments have since been restored," according to a UNESCO statement. "Better drainage and planning have also improved the preservation of the site's external walls and solved problems of dampness."
The water garden and another complex, Lahore Fort, were first inscripted to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981. Both sites are "outstanding examples of Mughal artistic expression at its height, as it evolved during the 16th and 17th centuries," according to UNESCO.
The Mughal civilization was a blend of Islamic, Persian, Hindu, and Mongol sources and dominated the Indian subcontinent for several centuries.
July 6, 2012
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Removed: Philippine Rice Terraces
Photograph by Chris Stowers, Panos
Batad village in the Philippines' Ifugao Province is surrounded by verdant rice terraces, one of five Philippine rice terraces to be inscripted to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995.
The terraces were placed on the World Heritage List in Danger in 2001 due to concerns about erosion and the effects of tourism, but were removed this year in recognition of the Philippines' conservation efforts.
The Ifugao rice terraces and villages are products of the Ifugao ethnic group, a minority community that has occupied the region for thousands of years.
"Built 2,000 years ago and passed on from generation to generation, the Ifugao Rice Terraces represent an enduring illustration of an ancient civilization that surpassed various challenges and setbacks posed by modernization," according to UNESCO.
(See National Geographic Traveler's photos of world wonders.)
July 6, 2012
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