The 7th edition of the annual South Asian Regional Conference on International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is taking place 20-23 August in Kathmandu. Yagya Bahadur Thapa, Honorable Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs in Nepal, will inaugurate the conference, being organised by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Government of Nepal.

Around 40 government officials representing ministries and governmental bodies from across the South Asia region — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Iran — will deliberate on key issues related to ‘Protection of Cultural Property during Armed Conflict‘ at the forum. The conference also involves a close participation of the UNESCO with which the ICRC signed a partnership agreement last year paving the way for the two organisations to collaborate on this subject.

Kathmandu had hosted the inaugural South Asian Conference on IHL in 2009 and another edition in 2014.

Follow us on Twitter @ICRC_nd for live updates from the conference.