Fears for fate of historical sites during Iran war - what's at risk?

UNESCO said it is deeply concerned about the fate of world heritage sites in Iran and across the region, after Tehran's Golestan palace, often compared to Versailles, and a historic mosque and palace in Isfahan were damaged in the war.

The UN's cultural agency urged all parties to protect the region's outstanding cultural sites, saying four of Iran's 29 world heritage sites had been damaged since the start of the US and Israeli war with Iran.

In the port of Siraf, in Bushehr province, several houses were hit in the historic quarter, home to many century-old buildings. 

Buildings close to the buffer zone of the prehistoric sites of the Khorramabad Valley have also been damaged, UNESCO said.

Call for protection

"UNESCO is deeply concerned by the first impact that the hostilities are already having on many world heritage sites," Lazare Eloundou Assomo, director of the World Heritage Centre, said, adding he was also concerned for sites in Israel, Lebanon and across the Middle East.

UNESCO has shared coordinates of key cultural sites to all parties.

"We are calling for the protection of all sites of cultural significance - everything that tells the history of all the civilizations of the 18 countries in the region," Eloundou Assomo added.

Some of the key historic sites that have been damaged have been in Tehran and Isfahan, with the latter regarded as not only one of Iran's but also the Islamic world's most important historic cities. 

Isfahan was the Safavid capital during the country's golden age of art, architecture and trade. 

Golestan Palace

The palace in Tehran, damaged in the US–Israeli strikes, is testimony to the grandeur of Iran's civilization in the 19th century, Assomo said.

Golestan palace was chosen as the Persian royal residence and seat of power by the Qajar family and shows the introduction of European styles in Persian arts, according to UNESCO. The last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, held a coronation ceremony here in 1969.

"We sometimes even compare it with the Versailles Palace in France, for instance, and it has suffered, unfortunately, some damage. We don't know the extent for the moment. But clearly, with the images that we have been able to receive, we can confirm ... it has been affected," Lazare Eloundou Assomo said.

Photos of the interior of the palace have shown piles of smashed glass and shards of wood on the floor, and shattered woodwork.

Historic marketplace

Bazar-e Bozorg or the Grand Bazaar in the Iranian capital Tehran is another historic site damaged by the US-Israeli airstrikes. It is the historic commercial core of the city, a vast covered marketplace stretching over 10 kilometers in a maze of interconnected passages. Locals often refer to it simply as 'bazaar.'

Like many historic bazaars across the Middle East, it functions as a living urban network where commerce, religious life and social interaction intersect. 

It has also played a significant role in Iran's political and economic history. Bazaar merchants were influential during the 1978–79 Iranian Revolution, supporting the movement that brought Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to power and led to the establishment of the Islamic Republic.

Masjed-e Jame

Isfahan was one of Central Asia's most important cities and a key point on the Silk Road trading route. Its Masjed-e Jame (Jameh Mosque) is more than 1,000 years old and shows the development of Islamic art through 12 centuries.

Also known as the Atiq Mosque, the complex of the historic congregational mosque, has gone under reconstruction and additions from around 771 CE through to the late 20th century. 

The Grand Bazaar of Isfahan extends from the mosque's southwestern side. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012, it is regarded as one of the largest and most significant monuments of Islamic architecture in Iran.

Naqsh-e-Jahan Square

The vast Naqsh-e Jahan Square, a 17th-century architectural jewel in the heart of the central Iranian city of Isfahan, has also been damaged.

Located in the center of Isfahan, it is one of the country's most important historic landmarks. Known as Shah Square before 1979 and sometimes called Imam Square, it was built between 1598 and 1629 during the Safavid era and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The square measures about 160 meters wide and 560 meters long, covering nearly 89,600 square meters. It is surrounded by major Safavid-period monuments, including the Shah Mosque to the south, Ali Qapu Palace to the west, Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque to the east, and the Qeysarie Gate to the north, which leads into the Isfahan Grand Bazaar. 

Naqsh-e Jahan Square is also featured on the reverse side of Iran's 20,000-rial banknote.