Bavarian palaces, imperial tombs in China and memorials to Khmer Rouge victims are among the sites being recognized by the United Nations agency.

The Trump administration intends to withdraw the U.S. from the organization, just two years after it rejoined after a five-year absence.

There are various obvious clues that summer has arrived in full: the end of the school year; the inevitable travel chaos at our main airports; traffic jams on the way to Cornwall.

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee recently concluded its session in Paris. Twenty-six new sites were added to the prestigious World Heritage List. The additions highlight community conservation efforts.

Four new African sites entered the UNESCO World Heritage List, bringing the total number to 112. This year, two African states presented their first nominations - Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone, reinforcing the universality of the List. By 2027, 7 other African countries not yet on the List are expected to present their first nomination.

Port Royal is Jamaica's second World Heritage Site, with the first being the Blue and John Crow Mountains, a rugged and forested area in the country's east, which served as a refuge and hideout for people fleeing slavery. That site was listed by UNESCO in 2015.

"Continued involvement in UNESCO is not in the national interest of the United States," a State Department spokeswoman said in the statement, also adding that "UNESCO works to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals,

President Donald Trump followed through with an expectant move on Tuesday to once again pull the United States from the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO. The decision comes only two years after the Biden administration rejoined the organization,

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee met in Paris this month to add to its list of cultural sites around the world deemed to be of “outstanding value to humanity.” The 26 new sites reflect the wide range encompassed by UNESCO’s criteria.

Three locations used by Cambodia’s brutal Khmer Rouge regime as torture and execution sites 50 years ago have been added by UNESCO to its World Heritage List.

Furthermore, UNESCO is facilitating urgent repair and rehabilitation works at key cultural landmarks in Odesa, with contributions from Italy and Japan. Beneficiary sites include the Odesa House of Scientists, the Odesa Fine Arts Museum, Stolyarsky Music School, and the Transfiguration Cathedral.