ISESCO chooses Jerusalem as Capital of Islamic Culture

By Khalid Mejdoub, Gulsen Topcu</p> <p>RABAT (AA) – The Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) said Thursday it has chosen Jerusalem as the Capital of Islamic Culture for 2019.</p> <p>Speaking at a press conference in Morocco's capital Rabat on ISESCO’s declaration of 2019 as the Year of Heritage in the Islamic World, Director General Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri said the organization has launched a comprehensive program to boost Islamic and international support for the preservation of cultural heritage in Jerusalem.</p> <p>He also urged the relevant authorities in the member states of the organization to support the initiative by organizing projects and cultural programs to increase the awareness about the heritage.</p> <p>Altwaijri proposed to declare other 2019 cultural capitals as brother cities to Jerusalem and urged each of these countries to allocate a week on Jerusalem within the framework of cultural capital programs.