Damascus, (SANA) – As the oldest continuously inhabited capital in the world, the Damascus Old City is a living testament to old civilization, qualifying it for the World Heritage and elevating it from national to human heritage.

Syria gives considerable attention to preserving the Old City of Damascus and other old cities that still contain historic landmarks reflecting their importance as points where diverse civilizations met.

Therefore, there is a need for historic documentation and presenting maps and plans that depict the history of the Old City of Damascus accurately and scientifically, and studying the current state of the city before beginning work on any plans.

Within this context, the Ministry of Local Administration, in cooperation with the European Commission delegation in Damascus, launched the Atlas of Old Damascus, which was prepared by the Municipal Administration Modernization (MAM) program.

The MAM work team presented a complete study containing historic and analytical studies, specifying difficulties and making suggestions that take into consideration the continuing evolution of the Old City as a historic city that must be preserved.

The Atlas, which includes old corrected maps, modern maps, detailed studies and analytical plans, is the first step in an integrated plan for preserving and developing the Old City and it will be used to develop future studies.

The Atlas consists of four sections. The first section details the historic and architectural development of Damascus and the historic buildings in it, in addition to the wall of Damascus.

The second section contains plans of buildings, registered archeological sites and surrounding areas, while the third section contains a detailed analysis of the current situation of areas around Old Damascus.

The fourth section contains the plans of Old Damascus within the wall, with detailed studies of streets, buildings, open areas and more.

In a statement to SANA, Minister of Local Administration Tamer al-Hejjeh noted that the Old City of Damascus attracts many scholars, historians and tourists and draws the attention of the world as a cultural landmark, which necessitated preparing a detailed document about the Old City.

"This effort is one of the results of cooperating with the European Union to define the archeological sites of Old Damascus," the Minister said, stressing the need for preserving the historic architectural identify of Damascus.

For his part, head of the European Commission delegation in Damascus Vassilis Bontosoglou said the Atlas is a scientific document that presents Damascus city and its historic importance, affirming the importance of preserving national and international cultural heritage.

H. Sabbagh