When World Heritage status is a curse

By Steve Meacham
Updated October 14 2015 - 5:08pm, first published 4:07pm
Yosemite, USA. Photo: Babak Tafreshi
Yosemite, USA. Photo: Babak Tafreshi
Tongariro, New Zealand. Photo: Matteo Colombo
Tongariro, New Zealand. Photo: Matteo Colombo
Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Istanbul. Photo: Murat Nasir / EyeEm
Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Istanbul. Photo: Murat Nasir / EyeEm
Haghia Sophia, Istanbul. Photo: Tetra Images
Haghia Sophia, Istanbul. Photo: Tetra Images

For more than half a century, Khaled al-Assad, 82-year-old scholar and archaeologist, worked as custodian of antiquities at the ancient Syrian wonder that is Palmyra – the 2000-year-old, Roman-era city that earned UNESCO World Heritage listing in 2009.