International Conference on Meroitic Studies urges international community to protect Sudan antiquities

The International Conference on Meroitic Studies called on the international community and its specialized institutions to protect and preserve antiquities and museums in Sudan, and support efforts to recover recently looted antiquities, as well as enhance international cooperation in monitoring and tracking stolen artifacts.
This came in the closing statement of the conference, which concluded its work in the German city of Münster in its thirteenth session, which was held during the period from September 9-13.
The closing statement of the conference adopted a number of important recommendations that would protect and develop the antiquities and museums sector in Sudan.
The Sudanese Ambassador to Germany, Ilham Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed, addressed the opening session of the conference, addressing in her speech the crimes and violations committed by the rebel Rapid Support Militia in its war against the Sudanese people and their cultural heritage, referring to the acts of vandalism and looting carried out by the militia against antiquities, museums and archaeological buildings in Sudan, and the illegal sale of stolen artifacts.
The Ambassador called for supporting national efforts aimed at protecting the Sudanese cultural heritage by establishing an observatory to monitor the theft and transfer of artifacts, and coordinating efforts and international cooperation and the cooperation of governments and archaeologists to enhance mechanisms to prevent the illegal trade in antiquities. It is worth noting that the International Meroitic Studies Conference has enjoyed wide participation from scholars, researchers and those interested in Meroitic civilization from all over the world. A group of Sudanese scholars from the National Authority for Antiquities and Museums, Sudanese academic institutions, and scholars in the field of archaeology also participated in the conference, where they presented many sound and reliable papers on the issues and topics of the conference, which focused on addressing the impact of war on antiquities and archaeological sites in Sudan and how to address this.