According to a media report on Thursday (July 2, 2026), the UN has warned Pakistan to undo the “reconstructions” that “undermined the integrity” of two historical sites in Taxila, a UNESCO World Heritage site, or else they will be added to the organization’s “danger list”, due to the recent “unnecessary interventions,”
UNESCO, the UN’s cultural arm, informed senior government officials in a recent meeting that it would not hesitate to “delist” the historical sites at Mohra Moradu and Sirkap, just as it had “delisted” a World Heritage Site in Germany. The Dawn newspaper reported, citing sources. If the acts were not rectified, the UN body threatened to “delist” Taxila from its World Heritage List.
Photos showed that fresh masonry works had replaced some antique walls, and reconstruction was carried out to increase the height of the walls, thereby defacing monuments that are thousands of years old, the report stated.
It was easy to identify between antique stones, which are irregular in size, and modern building material, which looked polished and consistent in size, the daily reported.
UNESCO, the Department of Archaeology and Museums (DOAM), and the Ministry of National Heritage and Cultural Division together visited the Taxila Museum last month.
According to an official, Mohra Moradu and Sirkap’s specialized conservation and restoration-related documents had been requested by UNESCO.
“The interventions being undertaken are conservation measures based on internationally accepted conservation principles, with the primary objective of stabilizing vulnerable archaeological remains, preventing further deterioration, and preserving the authenticity and integrity of these World Heritage properties,” stated General Malik Zaheer Abbas, director of the Punjab archaeology department. The Dawn reported that Abbas said it was incorrect to describe the ongoing work at Sirkap and Mohra Moradu as “reconstruction.”
The official continued, “There is currently no question of ‘reversing reconstruction’ because the works are conservation interventions, not reconstruction.”
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