Palestinian team rescues 1,700 artefacts from Gaza museums

September 30, 2026 at 06:45 PM1 min

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The Guardians of Heritage team has rescued more than 1,700 historical pieces from four museum collections in Gaza. The team works from a tent in al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, amid continued displacement and Israeli military restrictions. At least 164 cultural sites in Gaza have been damaged since October 2023, according to UNESCO.

Key Facts

At least 164 cultural sites in Gaza have been damaged since October 2023, according to UNESCO.
The Guardians of Heritage team has rescued more than 1,700 historical pieces from four museum collections.
As of April, 196 Palestinians have been killed in the Yellow Line area since the October 2025 ceasefire.
84 percent of all structures in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed since the war began.

Heritage Rescue Effort

The Mayasem Association for Culture and Arts launched the Guardians of Heritage team to recover artefacts at risk of deterioration or theft. Shaimaa Mohammad al-Natour, assistant coordinator of the programme, said the team has rescued more than 1,700 historical pieces from four museum collections. The team works from a tent in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, where they inspect and clean recovered archaeological pottery. The rescued items come from collections including the Great Omari Mosque, Hamam al-Sammara, Qasr al-Basha, and the al-Qarara Cultural Museum.

Obstacles and Risks

The team faces continued displacement, a shortage of specialised restoration equipment, and Israeli military restrictions. Rescuing items near the Yellow Line, a dividing zone under complete Israeli military control, poses a grave risk to the team. Al-Natour said the main difficulty is that the collections are located behind the Yellow Line, and one of the team's core principles is that human life comes first. As of April, 196 Palestinians have been killed in the Yellow Line area since the ceasefire came into effect in October 2025.