Three Palestinian libraries in East Jerusalem are involved in a project to index and restore manuscripts dating back hundreds of years, some to the 12th century.
The project involves the Khalidi Library, the Budeiri Family Library, and the Issaf Nashashibi Center for Culture and Literature.
Funded by the Aliph Foundation (International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Areas), the project aims to preserve the manuscripts at a controlled temperature and humidity to preserve them from damage, while cataloguing them electronically for presentation on the Internet.
Khader Salameh, director of the Khalidi Library, told Al-Fanar Media that the manuscripts are part of the heritage and history of the Palestinian people. They tell the culture and customs of a wide range of people and reflect their lifestyles and ways of thinking, he said.