RABAT, September 10. /TASS/. The earthquake that struck Morocco late on September 8 dealt serious damage not only to residential houses and infrastructure, but also to the country’s iconic museums and mosques.

This is particularly true for the country’s world-famous tourist center and cultural capital Marrakesh, which turned out to be the closest city to the epicenter of the disaster.

According to the 360 news portal, the earthquake damaged or destroyed many buildings in the historical medina districts of Marrakesh, included into UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985. More than a day after the earthquake, the district’s narrow streets are still covered with piles of rocks, shards of broken glass, fragments of steel fittings and broken roofs.

Damaged walls and collapsed facades are seen all across the Medina districts, home to numerous medieval buildings and cultural objects, exotic restaurants and designer shops. On Saturday, a UNESCO delegation visited the area.

"Our organization will help the Moroccan government is assessing the damage in the sphere of heritage and education, in ensuring the safety of buildings and in preparations for repairs," UNESCO Secretary-General Audrey Azoulay wrote on the X social network (formerly known as Twitter).

Even now, a number of experts admit that a serious blow was dealt to the cultural, historic and architectural heritage of Marrakech. Damage to many buildings is obvious: for example, the minaret of the Kharbouch Mosque has collapsed almost completely. The 69-meter minaret of Marrakesh’s iconic Kutubiyya Mosque, built in the 12th century, was also damaged in the disaster.

 

Museum collections damaged

According to Mehdi Qotbi, the chairman of the National Foundation of Museums of the Kingdom of Morocco, the earthquake also destroyed objects of material heritage. For example, the collection of the Dar Si Said Museum of pottery and carpets, located in a palace built in the second half of the 19th century, lost some of its valuable objects.

"A large portion of the museum’s pottery collection was damaged," Qotbi said, adding that many showpieces were broken.

Walls of palaces Dar El Bacha (the Museum of Confluences) and Jamaa El-Fna (the Museum of Intangible Heritage) were also damaged, but their collections remained intact.

"Marrakesh museums were created in old buildings, often in palaces, as was the case with Dar Si Said and Dar El Bacha. They were built with the use of materials and technologies of the bygone epoch," Qotbi added.

The buildings are now being examined to assess their present condition and structural damage. The National Foundation of Museums plans to reopen them for visitors by the first half of October 2023, when Morocco will host a joint meeting of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, welcoming thousands of delegates from abroad.

Over 2,000 fatalities

According to a statement from Morocco's National Geophysical Institute, the magnitude 7 earthquake struck at 11:11 p.m. local time on Friday. The center was in the district of Ighil, located in the province of Al Haouz, the Marrakesh-Safi region, at a depth of 8 kilometers. According to latest figures from the country’s interior ministry, the death toll has reached 2,012, while 2,059 people have been injured.

King of Morocco Mohammed VI ordered to provide immediate assistance to all people who lost their homes as a result of the earthquake. A three-day national mourning period has been declared in the country.