On Tuesday 5 May 2026, ICOM Palestine, the International Council of Museums’ National Committee in Palestine, held its founding general assembly by video link.
Marking a significant step in bringing Palestine’s museum sector into ICOM’s global network, the assembly followed a March 2025 decision by ICOM’s executive board, at its 175th session, to establish the committee.
Members reviewed the committee’s vision and draft statutes before electing the first board. The meeting was chaired by Mathaf Tarabin, director general of the Academy of Palestinian and Arab Museology in Paris, who had been appointed provisional chair to oversee the establishment phase.
The first board is chaired by Mohammad Halaika of the Yasser Arafat Museum, with Jehad Yasin of the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities as vice-chair. Obour Hashash of the Palestinian Museum serves as secretary-general and Zaid Yaqeen as treasurer. Baha Jubeh, Loay Abu Alsaud, Jihad Abu al-Kabash, Lena Laimoun, and Wala Gazal were also elected to the board.
Committee members were joined by representatives of Palestinian and international cultural organisations and public bodies. Among those in attendance were Adel Naim Daoud Attieh, permanent delegate of the State of Palestine to UNESCO, and Karim Hendili, head of the UNESCO Office in Ramallah, alongside representatives of the ICOM Secretariat and ICOM Arab.
The establishment of ICOM Palestine connects Palestinian museums to ICOM’s global network and opens new avenues for knowledge exchange. At a time when Palestinian heritage is increasingly under threat, it affirms the role of museums as spaces of knowledge, learning, and dialogue, central to protecting collective memory and sharing the Palestinian narrative with audiences in Palestine and beyond.