Heritage houses in Basra, Mosul, Al-Rasheed Street to be rehabilitated

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Director of the Heritage Department of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, Iyad Kadhim, announced the rehabilitation of heritage buildings in Basra governorate.

Kadhim clarified that the rehabilitation included renovating the Palace of Culture, the Writers Union building and the Inspectorate headquarters, in addition to maintaining and rehabilitating three heritage houses, two churches and two mosques.

Kadhim elaborated that the rehabilitation and maintenance works are funded by the European Union and carried out under the supervision of UNESCO.

Kadhim confirmed that the rehabilitation included 70 heritage houses in the old Mosul, the restoration of 74 heritage houses, the supervision of maintenance work of Khan Dhari in Abu Ghraib city and Dar al-Wali in al-Qashla, and the rehabilitation project of Qasr al-Jaf (Al-Jaf Palace) in Sadiyah town in Diyala governorate.

Kadhim indicated that the department is seeking to complete the project of rehabilitating Al-Rasheed Street in downtown Baghdad after the necessary surveys are made, and the required infrastructure is completed by the Ministries of Electricity and Communications and the Municipality of Baghdad.

Kadhim emphasized that the rehabilitation process will continue in three phases, and is funded by the Iraqi Private Banks League (IPBL) and the Baghdad Chamber of Commerce (BCC).

Kadhim also pointed out that the first phase includes organizing the infrastructure of the street and cleaning the facades. He added that the project will last for 12 months, starting from Al-Rusafi Square and Hafez Al-Qadi Square towards Al-Wathba Square.