The Dates and Folk Heritage Festival returned to the city of Palmyra in the countryside of Homs today, Tuesday, after a 16-year hiatus, under the patronage of the Ministry of Tourism. The festival was inaugurated by Minister of Tourism Mazen al-Salihani and Minister of Culture Muhammad Yasin al-Salih, with the presence of Homs Governor Marhaf al-Nu'asan, Chairman of the General Authority for Civil Aviation and Air Transport Omar al-Husri, and a number of official figures, with the aim of highlighting the agricultural and heritage assets of the city.
The festival will last for three days, from October 13 to 15, in the halls of the Palmyra City Museum. It includes a dates exhibition, camel displays, a visual memory corner for the city, a Bedouin corner, in addition to showcasing examples of handicrafts, traditional crafts, and heritage items, including the Bedouin loom. The festival features more than 50 types of dates produced in the Palmyra oasis, along with examples of traditional crafts and industries, including weaving and copperwork, and photos documenting the city's history and visual memory.
Homs Tourism Director Nizar al-Taweel told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) that the festival aims to introduce visitors to the products produced by the Palmyra oases and encourage local and international tourism. He noted that holding heritage events contributes to showcasing the city's assets and provides opportunities to connect with potential investors to establish investment projects there. Al-Taweel pointed out that the tourism assets in Palmyra are not limited to dates, but also include local industries, traditional crafts, and heritage collections, considering the festival as a step towards supporting the return of tourism activity to the city.
For his part, Director of Historical Buildings and Festival Organizer Muhammad Bahaa al-Din stated that the return of the festival after a 16-year hiatus revives a tradition that brings together the people of Palmyra with visitors and tourists. He explained that the current edition focuses on highlighting the diversity of the oasis's production and local folk heritage, with the aim of attracting attention to the city and enhancing its tourism and cultural presence. Bahaa al-Din noted that the presence of more than 50 types of dates reflects the agricultural richness of the Palmyra oasis, despite the damage it has suffered, expressing his hope that the festival will expand and that participation and attendance will increase in future editions.
For his part, farmer from Palmyra Khaled Ali al-Jum'a highlighted the distinctive taste of local dates, explaining that date production faces challenges, the most prominent of which are the shortage of water needed for irrigating palm trees and the spread of the date palm weevil. He called for securing irrigation water and providing necessary control measures to protect trees and preserve production. The festival comes within the framework of efforts to highlight the agricultural and heritage assets of the city of Palmyra, strengthen the connection of generations with their local heritage, activate tourism and economic activity there, and open the door to investment opportunities that support the city's restoration of its status as a tourist and cultural destination.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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