The Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), Salim Al-Malik, called on Monday for redoubled efforts to preserve cultural heritage, stressing that international cooperation is “the key to recovering looted property.” Al-Malik made the remarks in his speech at the opening of the International Conference on the Role of Customs Authorities in Combating Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property, which kicked off at ISESCO headquarters in the Moroccan capital Rabat with the participation of ministers, officials and experts in the field of cultural heritage protection. Al-Malik said that statistics show that more than 80 percent of artifacts on display worldwide are “of unknown origin or looted,” noting that ISESCO is working on a comprehensive strategy to combat illicit trafficking in cultural property in the Islamic world. He explained that this strategy relies on training personnel, linking databases, and investing in artificial intelligence to monitor and track artifacts and limit their movement in suspicious markets. For his part, Moroccan Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication Mehdi Bensaid said in his speech during the conference that illicit trafficking networks exploit legal loopholes, instability in some countries, and advanced technologies to carry out their criminal activities, stressing that Morocco attaches particular importance to cultural heritage, which is “a living testimony to human heritage.” Talal Al-Shebi, Assistant President of the Qatar General Customs Authority for Customs Affairs, pointed to the “pivotal role” of customs authorities in combating the smuggling and illicit trafficking of cultural property, noting the importance of international cooperation between relevant institutions to combat illicit trafficking in cultural property. The conference, organized by ISESCO in cooperation with the Qatar National Library, the Qatar General Customs Authority, and the Moroccan Customs and Indirect Taxes Administration, aims to strengthen cooperation and coordination between relevant authorities and exchange experiences in the field of combating illicit trafficking in cultural property. The conference will last for six days, during which a series of scientific and technical sessions will be organized on basic skills in protecting cultural property and technological customs methods in dealing with cultural property, in addition to training courses in the field of digital documentation techniques.