UNESCO adds 48 new sites to world heritage list

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has added 48 new sites to the world heritage list, already comprising 630 natural and historical sites.

The new list comprises 11 natural sites and 35 cultural ones sites, said Thursday chairman of the world heritage committee, Abdelaziz Touri - in a press conference in Marrakesh. The UNESCO has also added four sites in its list of endangered world heritage.

The committee, which held in the Moroccan central city of Marrakesh from Nov. 30 to Dec. 2 its 23rd session, is a UNESCO body that chooses sites to be included in the world heritage list. The status enhances the value of a site as a tourist destination and ensures that it is protected for future generations.

The list includes for the first time sites in South Africa (2 sites), Nigeria (1) and Turkmenistan (1).

Out of the 582 sites in the list, 288 monuments are located in Europe and north America and 46 are in Africa. Arab countries have 51 sites on the list, Asia 106 sites, the Pacific (17), Latin America and the Caribbean (74).

Previously-named World Heritage sites include some of the most famous places in the world, including four Moroccan sites, the Acropolis in Greece, the pyramids in Egypt, the Zimbabwe ruins, the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal in India, the Galapagos Islands, the Grand Canyon in the US, and the Great Barrier Reef off Australia.