Heritage sites

Bridge over tranquil waters: V UNESCO The World

Mediaeval crusader castles in Syria and ancient irrigation systems in Oman were among 18 new cultural and natural sites added to the un's World Heritage in the second week of July. The Vizcaya Bridge in Spain and the mining landscapes of Cornwall and West Devon in Britain were also included. The new sites, added at a meeting of unesco's World Heritage committee in Lithuania's capital Vilnius, brings the global list of cultural and natural sites to 830. The cultural body could increase the list even further at the current meeting. Officials said two more sites were still up for deliberation later on Thursday, but they would not say what these sites were.

But unesco's decision not to protect Mount Everest drew fire from environmental groups who called on the un body to act because they say global warming is melting glaciers surrounding the peak. Placing Everest on unesco's protection list would pressurise governments to protect them.