Doha, (SANA) – The activities of the Syrian Cultural Week kicked of on Sunday in the Qatari capital of Doha as part of the Doha, Arab Capital of Culture 2010 festivities.

In a speech during the opening of the Syrian Cultural Week, Minister of Culture Riadh Naasan Agha said the Doha, Arab Capital of Culture 2010 event follows up on the Damascus, Arab Capital of Culture 2008 and the Jerusalem, Arab Capital of Culture 2009 events, pointing out that beginning the Doha event with a Syrian cultural week shows the level of relations between the two countries and their peoples.

He also noted that the title of the opening performance of the Doha festivities, the House of Wisdom operetta, signifies the constant need for cultural structures that encompass Arab cultural heritage in addition to the need for constant cultural search for the future.

For his part, Qatari Minister of Culture Hamad bin Abdelaziz al-Kuwari expressed gratitude to Syria's leadership and people, lauding its presence, support and role in the Doha festivities.

Al-Kuwari said the Syrian Cultural Week will signal the beginning of the rest of the Arab activities, with notable participation by Syrian intellectuals, groups and programs that underline the role of culture in relations among peoples.

"Syria is the best country to represent Arab culture," the Qatari Minister concluded.

The Syrian Cultural Week will include theatrical performances such as Saladin, which was produced in 2009, in addition to visual arts activities, art exhibitions and galleries, book fairs, and artistic performances, in addition to the performance of Canaanite Iliad by the Ornina troupe.

The Canaanite Iliad tells the story of the Palestinian people's struggle since the days of the Canaanite civilization, with 18 set pieces that depict a specific part of Palestine's history.

The performance, which is dedicated to the Palestinian people and the late poet Mahmoud Darwish, also reflects the atrocities committed by Israeli occupation and the suffering of the Palestinian people, stressing that resistance is the only way to free the occupied lands.

H. Sabbagh