The Spanish and Palestinian Ministries of Culture are organising the 'International Forum for Palestinian Culture' in Madrid from 14 to 16 July

The Minister for Culture, Ernest Urtasun, appeared, at his own request, before the Culture Committee of the Lower House of Parliament to review his work at the helm of the Ministry of Culture since his previous appearance before the Chamber in November 2025.

During his address, he announced that Madrid will host an international conference from 14 to 16 July to address cultural protection and recovery in Palestine, titled the 'International Forum for Palestinian Culture'. This event is being organised jointly by the Ministries of Culture of Spain and Palestine.

During his appearance, Ernest Urtasun explained that "this forum stems from a deep-seated conviction: culture is one of the first victims of any process of mass destruction or any attempt to erase a people's identity". He added that "culture is also what unites peoples, even in the most difficult times. It is a space for coming together, for dialogue and for building peace."

The 'International Forum for Palestinian Culture' will consist of two parts: a ministerial meeting attended by international delegations, and a citizens' forum aimed at civil society.

The main aim of the ministerial meeting is to establish an international alliance to mobilise resources for the support and reconstruction of the Palestinian cultural sector, as well as for the safeguarding of its heritage. Furthermore, the focus will be on establishing protection mechanisms for artists and cultural professionals, whose public exposure to and denunciation of the conflict require special protection. This ministerial meeting will conclude with a final declaration - a call to action setting out the priorities, models of cooperation and specific commitments agreed upon during the meeting.

Furthermore, the citizens' forum will be a space open to the public where cultural projects, support programmes and civil society solidarity initiatives in support of Palestine will be presented. This forum will also be attended by international experts and organisations.

The Prado National Museum, the Reina Sofía National Art Centre and the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum will host the events, which will be attended by the Palestinian Minister for Culture, Emad Hamdan, as well as institutional, cultural and social representatives from numerous countries.

Defence of Palestinian culture

This forum was announced by the Minister for Culture, Ernest Urtasun, at the meeting of the EU Council of Ministers for Culture held in Brussels in November 2025, where, for the first time and at Spain's request, the Council addressed the issue of Palestinian heritage. During that meeting, Ernest Urtasun also called on the other EU countries to support the formation of an alliance for the reconstruction of Palestine, modelled on the alliance set up for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

This initiative continues the Ministry of Culture's ongoing efforts to support Palestinian culture. In addition to a €200,000 contribution to the UNESCO fund for the reconstruction of Gaza, the Ministry of Culture has carried out various initiatives in collaboration with UNRWA-the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees-aimed at supporting Gaza and denouncing the Israeli genocide. Furthermore, the Ministry of Culture contributes €100,000 annually to the TEJA programme, an international cultural solidarity network that provides support to artists and cultural professionals in emergency situations. Through this support, Palestinian artists travel to Spain for artistic residencies.

Non official translation