ASOR wishes to express solidarity with the Lebanese people and our deep sorrow over the loss of life and property in the tragedy that struck the city of Beirut on August 4, 2020.

Photo courtesy of the Directorate General of Antiquities/Ministry of Culture.

As an organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Near East and wider Mediterranean, we mourn the damage to the historical districts and museums of Beirut. ASOR has worked for many years with our Lebanese members to disseminate scholarship about the nation’s heritage assets. We remain committed to the continuation of our collective work and to the beginning of longer-term help for damaged cultural property.

We send our sincere condolences to our Lebanese members and to all the people of Lebanon. We will continue to work with our members and all other citizens of Lebanon to support the preservation of Lebanon’s cultural heritage resources. We pledge to do what we can together with the international community to help the people of Lebanon restore their heritage.

Effective immediately, ASOR is offering full scholarships to any Lebanese student or scholar to join ASOR or renew their lapsed membership, as well as full registration scholarships for those who would like to attend ASOR’s Virtual Annual Meeting in November 2020. This is a small token that we hope will support our Lebanese colleagues in their road to recovery. We are also exploring other ways that we can offer tangible assistance.

We encourage anyone who would like a scholarship to write ASOR at asor2020@asor.org. A lengthy application or request is not required—please simply send a brief request via e-mail.