24/07/2001 (Agence Europe) - The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted a declaration last Wednesday relating to the places of worship in the Balkans. It stresses that the protection and reconstruction of these "high places of Europe's historic and cultural heritage" are a major hope for reconciliation between peoples, nationalities, ethnicities and religions. The Committee calls on the leaders and citizens of Kosovo and, moreover, in the Balkan region, to refrain from any act of destruction. The Committee of Ministers also urges the international community to take a greater part in this reconstruction, and observes that UNESCO's plan for a restoration programme for religious monuments in Kosovo is a first encouraging step in that direction.