I N T E R N A T I O N A L D A I L Y 10 HERITAGE & TOURISM DECEMBER 18, 2019

Iran closes southwestern , border to Iraqi travelers

TOURISM TEHRAN — has closed its southwestern deskChazzabeh border crossing with to inbound Rome seeking travelers due to insecurity and unrest in the neighboring country. “The ban on the entry of Iraqi citizens is enforced by two coun- tries’ border crossings due to the continued insecurity in Iraq,” IRNA quoted Ahmad Sobhani, director of the border terminal, enhanced as saying on Sunday. cultural heritage co-op, Italian envoy says TOURISM TEHRAN — Italian is very rich in terms of cultural sites and deskambassador to Iran archeological sites… so there is a lot for The official added that Iran has prohibited Iranian passengers Giuseppe Perrone on Monday said that people to discover,” adding “Iran is a and pilgrims from visiting Iraqi cities, particularly the holy cities the two countries are in talks to deepen country that has a great and [un-]tapped of Karbala and Najaf, since two weeks ago for security reasons. bilateral cooperation, particularly in the potential and when it comes to tourism, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs late in October called on field of cultural heritage. cultural heritage, it has a lot to offer.” Rome’s ambassador to Tehran Giuseppe Perrone speaks in an undated photo Iranians to postpone traveling to the neighboring country until The envoy noted that “the project He further said, “The project will have further notice. aims to make sure that Iran develops a follow-up mission by the Iranian side IRNA in an interview released in October. ical, religious and cultural commonalities In a travel advisory issued on October 29, the Ministry of its capabilities to attract more foreign to Italy to share the details and engage Architecture in Iran has a long history between the two nations has helped Iran Foreign Affairs urged Iranian travelers and pilgrims to put off tourists and better organize its tourism in cooperation. The project relates to that is spectacular for Italian tourists. and Italy better understanding each other traveling to Iraq in the wake of escalation of anti-government industries.” the promotion of sites through technol- Pocket-friendly prices in Iran can be an- today, the ambassador added. protests in the country. He made the remarks in an interview ogies in a cooperative approach, new other reason for traveling to the country, In November, Tehran and Rome In July, Iran’s economic charge d’affaires in Najaf, Aref Abbasi, with IRNA on Tuesday on the sidelines of techniques, etc.” the official stated. marked 60 years of collaboration in the announced that the number of Iraqi nationals visiting Iran is a ceremony to launch a joint project for “Italian tourists are fond of Iran be- For more than 20 centuries Iran and fields of cultural heritage and archaeology gaining momentum this year as the Islamic Republic endeavors developing cultural heritage and tourism cause it has a natural diversity that is Italy have been the embodiment of Eastern in a conference, which was held at the to boost its tourism revenues in the face of U.S. sanctions. between the two countries. appealing to them. Italians are also fond and Western civilizations and such a long National Museum of Iran in downtown Some two million Iraqi nationals visited Iran during the first He described Iran “as a country that of Iran’s unique antiquities,” Perrone told history of relationships and many histor- Tehran. seven months of the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), constituting Iran’s largest source of inbound passengers. In return, hundreds of thousands of Iranian pilgrims head for the holy Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala each year. Omani airliner announces more flights to Iran TOURISM TEHRAN — airline has been operating flights to the deskbudget carrier SalamAir popular city known for its medical tourism, Over 50 firms seek to invest will add more flights to Iranian cities of Teh- pleasant weather and amazing historical ran and in the near future thanks to and tourist attractions since February 2018, in IKAC’s free trade zone high demands from customers. the report said. The airliner declared the expansion The carrier connected with Iran’s TOURISM TEHRAN — Over 50 Iranian companies have of its non-stop Muscat to Shiraz service capital city Tehran on June 9, 2019. The air- desk put in requests to invest in [the newly estab- from the current three to seven flights liner currently operates three Airbus A320 lished] free trade zone of the Imam Khomeini Airport City, IKAC per week yet it is set to add two more aircraft and five Airbus A320Neo aircraft managing director Ali Rostami said. flights to the existing four flights on the making it the first Omani carrier to utilize Muscat-Tehran route, Trade Arabia re- the highly-rated single aisle aircraft. ported on Monday. In October, Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Tour- Captain Mohamed Ahmed, CEO of Sala- ism and Handicrafts Minister Ali Asghar mAir, said: “The response from travelers in Mounesan met with his Omani counterpart this sector has been phenomenal since we Ahmed bin Nasser al-Mahrizi in Muscat to announced the route. Shiraz and Tehran promote bilateral ties particularly in the arena continue to be a key market for SalamAir of health and medical tourism. and we are delighted to offer more flights to look forward to offering affordable travel ties between Oman and Iran.” The Islamic Republic has set its goals to meet the growing demand. The new flight to our guests.” SalamAir, which was the first operator exceed its yearly medical travelers to around will provide travelers an additional option “SalamAir is also keen on contributing to Shiraz from Oman, has a seat factor of 2 million in [calendar year] 1404 (March to travel to these two popular cities. We to deepening both commerce and tourism above 80 percent to the destination. The 2025-March 2026). Due to its closeness to the capital Tehran and access to sur- rounding areas, there are many investment opportunities in IKAC for domestic and foreign companies, he added. He made the remarks in the opening ceremony of the 4th International Exhibition of Transportation, Logistics and Related Iranian airline to start Ahvaz- route Industries at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla on Sunday. TOURISM TEHRAN — Iran’s Qeshm Air has an- Commenting on the new route, provincial tourism chief The ceremony was also attended by Transport and Urban desknounced it will launch a flight service be- Seyyed Hekmatollah Mousavi noted that it could help expand Development Minister Mohammad Eslami, tens of relevant of- tween Ahvaz, capital of Khuzestan province, and Oman’s tourism with the Sultanate, the report said. ficials, business people and traders as well. port city of Sohar, in January 2020. Khuzestan province is home to three UNESCO World The weekly service is scheduled to take its maiden flight Heritage sites of Susa, Tchogha Zanbil and Shushtar Historical on Bahman 1 (January 21, 2020) and it will be operated on Hydraulic System yet it is a region of raw beauty where its ROUND THE GLOBE Tuesdays, director of Khuzestan airports said on Sunday. visitors could spend weeks exploring. The province is also Ahvaz airport currently operates flights to and a cradle for handicrafts and arts whose crafters inherited Heard and McDonald , Mohammadreza Rezaei added. from their preceding generations. Islands Heard and McDonald Islands are remote sub-Antarctic vol- Ancient skeleton with ‘extremely rare form of dwarfism’ dating back canic islands located in the southern Indian Ocean about half-way between Australia and South Africa, and just over 1,600 kilometers from Antarctica. 5,000 years unearthed in China The remains are of a human who would able to diagnose the young adult with “The ancient historical texts show that stature could have been due to an un- have suffered from a very uncommon skeletal dysplasia. they may, in fact, have been revered in deractive thyroid or pituitary gland in form of dwarfism around 5,000 years ago This medical term covers a range of some situations.” their early life. The skeleton was unearthed at a burial conditions that affect bone development The skeleton’s teeth enabled the ar- This would have affected the ancient site near the Yellow River in east-central but most people know it as dwarfism. chaeologists to determine that it was the human’s hormone levels and stunted bone China. The condition is rare in modern humans remains of a young adult. growth, organ function and potentially It was found alongside the remains but shows up even less in the archaeo- They also discovered that the skeleton cognitive development. of other people who lived between 3300 logical record. had short limbs and a small head and trunk. The archaeologists aren’t sure how and 2900 BC. In fact, less than 40 ancient cases have In more common forms of dwarfism the individual would have been treated All of the skeletons were found with been discovered. the limbs grow disproportionately smaller when they were alive. their hands on top of their bodies apart Co-author of the research Sian Hal- than the head and torso. It’s likely they needed the support of from the skeleton with dwarfism. crow, an archaeologist at the University This led the authors to diagnose the others to survive but the difference in the Instead, the hands were tucked behind of Otago in New Zealand, told Forbes: “I Neolithic skeleton with a condition called way the remains were laid out alongside its back. think it is important for us to recognize “proportionate dwarfism”. other skeletons indicate there’s a chance The property covers a total area of 658,903 hectares Archaeologists first noticed that the that disability and difference can be found Proportionate dwarfism is rare in both they were treated like an outsider. of which about 37,000 hectares is terrestrial, and the re- remains appeared shorter and weaker in the past, but these did not necessarily the archaeological record and amongst This research has been published in the mainder marine. than the rest. have negative connotations socially or living humans. International Journal of Paleopathology. The islands are a unique wilderness, containing outstanding After further investigation they were culturally. Experts think the skeleton’s short (Source: The Sun) examples of biological and physical processes continuing in an environment essentially undisturbed by humans. Heard Island is dominated by Big Ben (an active volcano rising to a height of 2,745 meters), and is largely covered by 609-year-old mosque is transported 2½ miles from ancient Turkish snow and glaciers. McDonald Island is much smaller, covering only 100 hec- tares at the time of inscription, and is surrounded by several city which is due to be flooded when a new dam is built smaller rocks and islands. The only active sub-Antarctic volcanos are found on these A 609-year-old mosque is being transported two-and- the new dam. islands, with the volcano on McDonald Island erupting after a-half miles away from an ancient Turkish city that is Six structures have already been relocated - Artuklu inscription and doubling the size of the island. due to be flooded. Hamam (bathhouse), Sultan Süleyman Koç Mosque, The island group’s physical processes provide valuable The Er-Rizk Mosque is being moved from Hasankeyf, Imam Abdullah Zawiyah, Zeynel Abidin Mausoleum and indicators of the role of crustal plates in the formation of which is going to be flooded because of construction Eyyubi Mosque were among the previously relocated ocean basins and continents, of dynamic glacial changes in of the Ilisu dam, to the new Hasankeyf Culture Park. structures along with the middle entrance of a castle the coastal and submarine environment, and of atmospheric The building, which weighs a whopping 1,700 tons, The mosque, which is the largest in Hasankeyf, was and oceanic warming. was transported on a Self-Propelled Modular Trans- taken apart piece by piece and reassembled on the The large populations of marine birds and mammals, porter along the Tigris River. platform under supervision from the State Hydraulic combined with a virtual absence of introduced species, pro- The mosque’s minaret, which was built in 1409 under Works and the General Directorate of Cultural Assets vide a unique arena for the maintenance of biological and the order of Ayyubids’ ruler Ebu’l Mefahir Suleyman, and Museums, according to the Daily Sabah. evolutionary processes. was moved separately. The Er-Rizk Mosque is being moved from Hasankeyf, which It will be reconstructed upon its arrival in the cultural (Source: UNESCO) All of the historic sites in Hasankeyf have been grad- is going to be flooded because of construction of the Ilisu park. Its journey was estimated at seven hours. ually transported to prepare for the construction of dam, to the new Hasankeyf Culture Park (Source: Daily Mail)