UNESCO launches mission to Odesa to assess condition of historic center

A joint mission of the UNESCO World Heritage Center and ICOMOS has begun work in Odesa to assess the condition of the city's historic center and determine further steps to preserve it. The mission, which was supposed to arrive in 2023, was postponed due to intense shelling, but now the experts have the opportunity to assess the situation on the ground.

This was reported by Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov on Telegram, UNN reports.

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A joint mission of the UNESCO World Heritage Center and ICOMOS is working in Odesa, which was supposed to arrive in 2023, but due to intense shelling, the visit was postponed. The mission will assess the condition of the historic center and determine further steps for its preservation

According to Trukhanov, in 2023, Odesa received the status of a World Heritage Site. And in almost three years, about 10 large-scale attacks have been carried out on the historic center and buffer zone, and about 170 monuments have been damaged.

The UNESCO mission will work for several days, assessing the overall condition of the site and the implementation of the recommendations that were provided when Odesa was included in the list. It is about preserving the integrity of the historic center, identifying key threats and developing solutions to protect it

Recall 

Earlier, UNN wrote that UNESCO responded to a letter from the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets and condemned the Russian strikes on Odesa, which it carried out on November 14, 2024. The attack damaged 21 architectural monuments in the city center. In particular, UNESCO called for an end to attacks on cultural property and conducted a remote damage assessment.