RIYADH: Experts gathered at an international conference in Riyadh on Tuesday to discuss the latest historical secrets unearthed at Al-Faw archaeological site in Saudi Arabia, including information about the complex network of trade routes that intersected there and the cultural exchanges that took place.

The event, organized by the Saudi Heritage Commission, follows the addition in July of Al-Faw to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites. It is the eighth location in the Kingdom to achieve this recognition.

Ajab Al-Otaibi, director of the commission’s Archaeological Documentation and Research department talked about the ways in which recent discoveries have changed our understanding of ancient civilizations in the region.

“The most recent excavations have revealed a complex network of trade routes and cultural exchanges that connected Al-Faw with other kingdoms in the Arabian Peninsula and beyond,” he said. 

“These findings have significantly reshaped our understanding of the social and economic dynamics in the region during ancient times.”

The discoveries offer fresh insights into trade and communication networks in the region at the time, and help to create a more comprehensive understanding of the communities that lived there, he added.

Noura Al-Khamees, general manager of the World Heritage Sector at the commission, welcomed the recognition of the site by UNESCO. 

“Having Al-Faw on UNESCO’s World Heritage List confirms the importance of the site to the world,” she said.

“Not only is it a testament to the great history and significance of the site but it’s a global recognition of the strong, Saudi-led management, conservation, protection, research and presentation of Al-Faw.”

One of the specific topics discussed during the conference was the rock art and inscriptions discovered at the site, which the experts said provide valuable insights into the lives of ancient inhabitants of Al-Faw. 

The attendees were invited to participate in field visits to the site to see for themselves the ongoing preservation efforts and experience the history it reveals.

Organizers said Al-Faw is more than simply an archaeological site, it is a symbol of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to preserving and sharing its cultural heritage with the world.

Al-Faw is in Wadi Ad-Dawasir, about 700 kilometers southwest of Riyadh, at the intersection of the Empty Quarter desert and the Tuwaiq mountain range. It contains about 12,000 archaeological artifacts and has a history of human habitation stretching back more than 6,000 years.

MAKKAH: Saudi Arabia’s Heritage Commission stressed that it will stand firmly against people who tamper with archeological sites, taking legal measures against them and preventing any transgressions that pose a threat to the safety of the Kingdom’s heritage.

In the past week, the commission observed several violations of the antiquities and urban heritage regulations in Al-Wajh governorate in the Tabuk region and referred 23 expatriates to the relevant authorities.

The Heritage Commission explained that the encroachments were observed on the Umm Qurayyat and Al-Arja sites in Al-Wajh, Tabuk.

The violators moved stones and soil from an archeological site, it noted, adding that authorities will take legal measures against them.

The commission noted that it arrested numerous individuals who were involved in similar violations and investigations are underway in accordance with the applicable legal procedures.

In its statement to Arab News, it emphasized that its mission is to protect and effectively manage the Kingdom’s cultural wealth and archaeological sites, by enforcing laws and regulations that ensure the protection of these sites.

The commission also seeks to raise local communities’ awareness about the importance of preserving cultural heritage as an integral part of the nation’s historical identity.

The Heritage Commission outlined the penalties for vandalism and attacks on heritage sites, as stipulated in Articles 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76 and 77 of the Antiquities and Urban Heritage Law.

According to these regulations, anyone who illegally appropriates an antiquity belonging to the state faces imprisonment for a period ranging from six months to seven years, and fines of between SR50,000 ($13,300) and SR500,000.

In addition, the articles stipulate that anyone who violates a monument, archeological site or urban heritage site by destroying, altering, removing, excavating, damaging and changing its features, can be punished with imprisonment for a period ranging from three months to three years, and a fine between SR20,000 and SR300,0000.

The commission added in its statement: “Anyone who surveys or excavates antiquities without a license faces imprisonment for a period of not more than two years and a fine of not more than SR200,000 or with one of these two punishments.

“Similar penalties apply to anyone who imitates or falsifies antiquity or performs any of the total or partial demolition works within the boundaries of antiquities and urban heritage sites, or builds on them, without obtaining approval from the ministry.”

It indicated that anyone who modifies a building or an urban heritage site, makes a modification in the surrounding environment that damages it without taking the ministry's approval or moves rubble, stones, or soil from monuments and urban heritage sites without the ministry’s approval, faces imprisonment for not more than a year and a fine not exceeding SR100,000 or one of these two penalties.

Similar sanctions apply to anyone who throws rubble or waste, defaces a monument or urban heritage by writing, painting, engraving, sticking advertisements on it, or committing arson in monuments and urban heritage sites.