RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Heritage Commission announced it was launching the “Modern Urban Heritage” initiative to preserve important landmarks of modern architectural heritage.
This includes the most important distinctive built cultural models, and represent key elements that shaped the memory and history of architecture and urbanism in the Kingdom in the past, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.
The initiative is part of the commission’s vision, which is embodied in celebrating heritage as a cultural wealth, and based on its mission to protect, manage and enable innovation and sustainable development of the components of cultural heritage.
The commission will activate the initiative according to three programs, which include the Modern Urban Heritage Exploration and Recording Program, the Modern Urban Heritage Documentation Program, and the Modern Urban Heritage Preservation and Restoration Program.
They will be implemented in six phases representing the life cycle of the governorate, and will include exploration, architectural and urban documentation, registration and coding, restoration and rehabilitation, development and investment, and management and operation.
The initiative identified eight main criteria for selecting and registering the landmarks and buildings of the modern urban heritage, which include aesthetic, historical and cultural value, scientific and technological value, prominent landmark, rarity, spatial context, site status, and authenticity, so that they are included in the National Urban Heritage Register after achieving all or part of these criteria.
The initiative is of paramount importance in the efforts of the Heritage Commission to preserve the components, elements and buildings of modern urban heritage, as the time scope of the initiative covers a major architectural period in the Kingdom’s development journey, closely linked with the change of building patterns in response to the economic and social growth that Saudi society has experienced in the past six decades.
The initiative seeks to restore the memory of the buildings that embody that period, whether they still exist, or have been lost or previously neglected.
Saudi authorities launch modern urban heritage initiative to preserve landmarks
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Saudi authorities launch modern urban heritage initiative to preserve landmarks
Threat to Kingdom’s security is ‘red line’ that will be ‘addressed and neutralized,’ Saudi envoy says
- Abdulaziz Alwasil tells UN Security Council the situation in southern Yemen is ‘a just cause with social and historic dimensions’ that can only be resolved through dialogue
- Recent military activity in the south was unilateral, resulting in an escalation that harms the interests of Yemeni people and undermines efforts to address issues in the south, he said
NEW YORK CITY: Any attempt to threaten Saudi Arabia’s national security is a “red line” and will be met with decisive action, the Kingdom’s ambassador to the UN told the Security Council on Wednesday.
Speaking during a meeting of the council to discuss Yemen, Abdulaziz Alwasil said the situation in the south of the country is “a just cause with social and historic dimensions” that can only be resolved through dialogue.
“We stress that any attempt to threaten our national security is a red line, and we will not hesitate to take the necessary actions and steps to address it and neutralize it,” he added.
Alwasil reaffirmed Saudi Arabia’s support for Yemeni President Rashad Al-Alimi, the Presidential Leadership Council, and the Yemeni government in their efforts to achieve security, stability, development and peace while preserving national unity.
He said military activity by Southern Transitional Council forces in Hadramout and Al-Mahra on Dec. 2, 2025, was unilateral, did not have the approval of the Presidential Leadership Council, and was not carried out in coordination with the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen.
It had resulted in an unjustified escalation that harmed the interests of the Yemeni people, undermined efforts to address the issues in the south, and ran counter to the coalition’s objectives, Alwasil added.
The Kingdom, working with its coalition partners, the Presidential Leadership Council and the Yemeni government, had moved to contain the situation by dispatching a military force to coordinate arrangements with the Southern Transitional Council in Aden, he said.
The aim was to ensure the return of the southern council’s forces to their previous positions outside of Hadramout and Al-Mahra, and the handover of camps to legitimate government forces and local authorities in line with agreed procedures, Alwasil added.
He expressed regret over the military operations that took place in Hadramout and Al-Mahra, close to Saudi Arabia’s southern border, which he said posed a direct threat to the Kingdom’s national security, as well as the security of Yemen and regional stability. Such steps were extremely dangerous, he added, and contradicted the principles on which the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen had been founded.
Alwasil welcomed a prisoner and detainee exchange agreement signed in Muscat on Dec. 23, which he described as an important humanitarian measure to alleviate suffering and build confidence.
He praised Oman for hosting and sponsoring the consultations and supporting negotiations, and commended the efforts of UN’s special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, the International Committee of the Red Cross and all others that has played a part.
Regarding the political efforts to resolve the crisis, Alwasil said Saudi Arabia welcomed President Al-Alimi’s call for an inclusive conference in Riyadh to bring together all stakeholders to discuss just solutions to the situation in southern Yemen.
Preparations for the conference have begun, he added, in cooperation with the Yemeni government and southern representatives, reflecting the close ties between the two countries and their shared interests in stabilizing Yemen.
He urged all southern stakeholders to participate actively and constructively in the talks, to help find comprehensive and just solutions that meet the legitimate aspirations of the people of southern Yemen.
Alwasil called on all Yemeni forces and stakeholders to cooperate and intensify their efforts to reach a lasting political settlement that would ensure security and stability.
He described the southern issue as “a just cause with social and historic dimensions,” adding that “the only way to address it is through dialogue that leads to a comprehensive political solution” based on nationally and internationally agreed terms of reference.
