SEVILLE - Eight new World Heritage Sites were added to the United Nations World Heritage List at the heritage committee's meeting in Seville on June 26. The only two new natural sites are Italy's Dolomites mountains and the Wadden Sea Ecosystem, tidal flats in the North Sea basin between Germany and the Netherlands. Created by the United Nations Scientific Educational and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) the World Heritage Committee identifies, protects and preserves cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value.
Three countries joined the international inventory of properties for the first time: Kyrgyzstan for its Sulamain-Too Sacred Mountain, once at the crossroads of important routes on the Central Asian Silk Roads; Cape Verde for the Cidade Velha 15th century historic centre; and Burkina Faso for its ancient stone fortresses at the Ruins of Lorope'ni. The World Heritage Committee removed Germany's Dresden Elbe Valley from the prestigious list, the second removal since the Arabian Oryx Sanctuary in Oman was deleted from the list in 2007. The Walled City of Baku in Azerbaijan was removed the List of World Heritage in Danger but two sites were added to the black list; the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System and Colombia's Los Katios National Park.
