Azernews.Az

By Laman Ismayilova

Novruz holiday has been celebrated at the UNESCO headquarters.

The celebration of the spring festival has been postponed in UNESCO for the last two years amid a coronavirus pandemic.

After a two-year break, it was reorganized at the initiative of Azerbaijan's Permanent Mission to UNESCO.

Permanent Delegations to UNESCO, diaspora members of the diaspora of these countries attended the festivity.

Permanent Delegate of Azerbaijan to UNESCO, Ambassador Elman Abdullayev addressed the event.

In his speech, Elman Abdullayev stressed the importance of the spring holiday, its moral significance and the preservation of Novruz traditions in 12 countries. He pointed out that Novruz revives the national traditions of the Azerbaijani people.

As the guest of honor, the President of the 41sr General Conference Santiago Irazabal Mourao thanked the Azerbaijani delegation for organizing the event.

UNESCO Deputy Director General Xing Qu underlined the importance of the Novruz holiday, which was included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2009.

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay greeted everyone and congratulated them on Novruz holiday. She underlined that despite the difficult times, this beautiful holiday is a symbol of renewal, dreams, awakening of nature, meetings with families and friends.

The event was followed by a gala concert and a reception featuring national dishes of 12 countries, including Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Musical pieces such as "Yellow Bride", "Spring Girl", "Quince Flower" were played on the balaban accompanied by oud and drum. Talented musician living in France Saddam Novruzbeyov delighted the guests with national music on the balaban.

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