TEHRAN– On Friday, Alamut, a semi-mountainous region in Qazvin province, west-central Iran, hosted a conference on the potential and importance of World Heritage sites for local communities.

Organized on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, the meeting was attended by several cultural heritage and tourism experts, local officials, and the representatives of the local communities, CHTN reported on Sunday.

The possible inclusion of the centuries-old Alamut castle could have positive effects on the local economy as well as enhance tourism in the region, said Qazvin’s tourism chief Alireza Khazaeli.

Meanwhile, it is well known and appreciated that the local people of the Alamut region have been very active in spreading and promoting the region’s culture for a long time, the official added.

One of the most astounding pieces of Iran's Qazvin region, the valleys of Assassins were once the spine of Hasan-e Sabbah (1070–1124) and his followers as remnants of their history are everywhere, hiding in the ancient sight.

In the 1930s, British-Italian explorer and travel writer Freya Stark described her exploration of the place in her book “The Valleys of the Assassins.”

Alamut is famed for a well-fortified castle nested on top of a hill, once sheltering the followers of Sabbah, who was the spiritual leader of a heretical Ismaili sect, known as ‘Assassins.’ Narratives say Sabbah led a bizarre, much-feared mercenary organization whose members were dispatched to murder or kidnap leading political and religious figures of the day.

Narratives say that the name Alamut, which means “eagle’s nest”, is associated with a regional 8th-century king who spied an eagle landing amid its rugged lofty crags and was inspired to build an impregnable fortress.

For centuries, Alamut castle was almost forgotten and only returned to public consciousness with the publication of Stark’s 1930s travel diary, Valleys of the Assassins. A copy of that recently reprinted volume makes a great companion for the trip.

ABU/AM