The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars. The commission is also responsible for commemorating Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action during the Second World War. The commission was founded by Sir Fabian Ware and constituted through Royal Charter in 1917 as the Imperial War Graves Commission. The change to the present name took place in 1960.
Jeddah, alternatively transliterated as Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda, is a port city in Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia, located along the Red Sea coast in the Hejaz region. Jeddah is the commercial center of the country. It is not known when Jeddah was founded, but Jeddah's prominence grew in 647 when the Caliph Uthman made it a travel hub serving Muslim travelers going to the holy city of Mecca for Islamic pilgrimage. Since those times, Jeddah has served as the gateway for millions of pilgrims who have arrived in Saudi Arabia, traditionally by sea and recently by air.
Al-Balad, also known as Jeddah Historic District, is the historical area of Jeddah, the second largest city of Saudi Arabia. Al-Balad can literally be translated to "The Town". Al-Balad is the historic center of the City of Jeddah.
Al Baha is a city in south western Saudi Arabia located in the Sarawat Mountains. It is the capital of Al Bahah Region, and is one of the Kingdom's prime tourist attractions. It enjoys a pleasant climate and is surrounded by more than forty forests, including Raghdan, Al-Zaraeb and Baidan. Al Baha is the headquarters of the Governor, local councils and branches of governmental departments. Receiving the state's special attention, the city of Al Baha abounds in educational, tourist and health institutions. It is considered the capital of the Ghamdi and Zahrani tribes in Saudi Arabia, and most of its inhabitants are from the native tribes.
Serenata is a Philippine children's choir in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The Tomb of Eve, also known as Eve's Grave and Eve's Tomb, is an archeological site located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is considered by some Muslims to be the burial place of Eve. Prince Faisal, Viceroy of Hejaz, destroyed it in 1928. In 1975, the site was also sealed with concrete by religious authorities, who disapprove of pilgrims praying at tombs.
Accurate religious demographics are difficult to obtain in Saudi Arabia, but there are approximately 2.1 million Christians in Saudi Arabia in 2020. Christians in Saudi Arabia are reported to face widespread discrimination and harassment, including both foreign-born Christians and native Christians.
The Vis-en-Artois British Cemetery, Haucourt is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) burial ground for the dead of World War I located between the communes of Vis-en-Artois and Haucourt in the département of Pas-de-Calais, France.
The Voormezeele Enclosures are Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) burial grounds for the dead of the First World War located in the Ypres Salient on the Western Front.
PerthCemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission burial ground for the dead of the First World War located near Ypres (Ieper) in Belgium on the Western Front.
The destruction of heritage sites associated with early Islam is an ongoing phenomenon that has occurred mainly in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, particularly around the two holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina. The demolition has focused on mosques, burial sites, homes and historical locations associated with the Islamic prophet Muhammad, his companions, and many of the founding personalities of early Islamic history by the Saudi government. In Saudi Arabia, many of the demolitions have officially been part of the continued expansion of the Masjid al-Haram at Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina and their auxiliary service facilities in order to accommodate the ever-increasing number of Muslims performing the pilgrimage (hajj).
The Pozières Memorial is a World War I memorial, located near the commune of Pozières, in the Somme department of France, and unveiled in August 1930. It lists the names of 14,657 British and South African soldiers of the Fifth and Fourth Armies with no known grave who were killed between 21 March 1918 and 7 August 1918, during the German advance known as the Spring Offensive, and the period of Allied consolidation and recovery that followed. The final date is determined by the start of the period known as the Advance to Victory on 8 August.
The Protestant Mount Zion Cemetery on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, is a cemetery owned by the Anglican Church Missionary Trust Association Ltd., London, represented by the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and The Middle East. In 1848 Samuel Gobat, Bishop of Jerusalem, opened the cemetery and dedicated it as ecumenical graveyard for congregants of Anglican, Lutheran, Reformed (Calvinist) and old Catholic faith. Since its original beneficiary, the Bishopric of Jerusalem was maintained as a joint venture of the Anglican Church of England and the Evangelical Church in Prussia, a united Protestant Landeskirche of Lutheran and Reformed congregations, until 1886, the Jerusalem Lutheran congregation preserved a right to bury congregants there also after the Jerusalem Bishopric had become a solely Anglican diocese.
The English coastal city of Brighton and Hove, made up of the formerly separate Boroughs of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, has a wide range of cemeteries throughout its urban area. Many were established in the mid-19th century, a time in which the Victorian "cult of death" encouraged extravagant, expensive memorials set in carefully cultivated landscapes which were even recommended as tourist attractions. Some of the largest, such as the Extra Mural Cemetery and the Brighton and Preston Cemetery, were set in particularly impressive natural landscapes. Brighton and Hove City Council, the local authority responsible for public services in the city, manages seven cemeteries, one of which also has the city's main crematorium. An eighth cemetery and a second crematorium are owned by a private company. Many cemeteries are full and no longer accept new burials. The council maintains administrative offices and a mortuary at the Woodvale Cemetery, and employs a coroner and support staff.
Quéant Road Cemetery is a World War I cemetery located between the villages of Buissy and Quéant in the Nord-Pas de Calais region of France. Situated on the north side of the D14 road, about three kilometres from Buissy, it contains 2,377 burials and commemorations of Commonwealth soldiers who died in the era of 1917 and 1918. The first burials were of soldiers who died in the period from September to November 1918. Following the Armistice the cemetery was enlarged to accommodate over 2,200 burials moved from surrounding battlefields and cemeteries.
Ausaf Sayeed is a retired Indian diplomat, belonging to Indian Foreign Service of the 1989 batch. He served as the Secretary from March 2022 to September 2023.
Mishari bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was a Saudi Arabian businessman. He was a member of the House of Saud.
Al-Baqi cemetery, the oldest and one of the two most important Islamic graveyards located in Medina, in current-day Saudi Arabia, was demolished in 1806 and, following reconstruction in the mid-19th century, was destroyed again in 1925 or 1926. An alliance of the House of Saud and the followers of the Wahhabi movement known as the Emirate of Diriyah carried out the first demolition. The Sultanate of Nejd, also ruled by the House of Saud and followers of Wahhabism, carried out the second. In both cases, the actors were motivated by the Wahhabi interpretation of Islam, which prohibits the building of monuments on graves.
Imelda Macapundag Panolong is a Filipina career diplomat who is the current Ambassador of the Philippines to Oman. She is the first Muslim woman in the Philippine diplomatic corps to be promoted to the rank of Career Minister and later, Chief of Mission, Class II and also the first female Muslim ambassador of the Philippines. Before becoming ambassador, she served as the consul general of the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and has completed tours of duty in Pakistan, Bahrain, Canada, Indonesia and the United States.
Mailly Wood Cemetery is a military cemetery with casualties from the First World War, located in the French village of Mailly-Maillet (Somme). It is maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
