Kuwait City's Iconic Towers Granted Arab Heritage Status - Observatory

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BEIRUT, July 30 (KUNA) -- The iconic towers in the heart of Kuwait City have been designated as an Arab heritage site under the category of modern architecture, an updated list of a pan-Arab urban and architectural observatory showed on Wednesday.
The Arab heritage label comes after the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) had nominated the trio of slender towers for such a distinction, the body's restoration of historical buildings department chief Mahmoud Al-Rubaie told KUNA, citing the towers as a landmark and an enduring symbol of modern day Kuwait.
In addition to being a renowned Kuwaiti tourist hotspot, the official spoke of the functional meaning behind the iconic towers, having served as a national water storage and distribution facility, while the architects of the landmark wanted to put an "aesthetic touch" on the structures, transforming them into a beguiling national emblem, he added.
The chief of the Arab Urban and Architectural Observatory committee, Mohammad Abusaadi, said that sites nominated by Arab states for inscription on its heritage list are evaluated based on their cultural or natural significance, citing some 19 locations across the Arab world to have gained heritage status.
On the justification for including Kuwait Towers on the list, he said the structures are "deserving," given their historic and cultural significance, which is a major prerequisite to be granted such a distinction.
The observatory, an affiliate of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization, is convening a two-day gathering in the Lebanese capital to approve heritage status on a number of sites across the Arab region. (end)
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