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KABUL: A fire ripped through Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris, destroying its roof, toppling the spire and threatening the remaining structure of the building.
Former President Hamid Karzai in a tweet message said that its as said as destruction of Buddhas of Bamyan. “Notre-Dame, a world monument, a French sentiment, went through the pain of fire last night. I felt as sad as when the Buddhas of Bamyan were destroyed.
In march 2001, Taliban insurgents destroyed the Buddhas. They were subsequently blown apart and left in rubble. However, Taliban insurgents though it had destroyed one of the world’s wonders, the monumental Buddha status of the Bamyan valley. But the Buddhas shine again in the towering cutouts in the mountainside where the stood for centuries. They are back through 3-D light projections, and looks great.
Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah also reacted to the damage of Notre-Dame due to fire which is a loss to world heritage. “France has been a long-standing partner in discovery and rehabilitation of historic monuments in Afghanistan. We share France’s agony and hope for Notre-Dame’s full restoration soon,” Abdullah said in a tweet message.
The deputy mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Gregoire, said the cathedral had suffered “colossal damages”, and the emergency services were trying to salvage the art and other priceless pieces stored in the cathedral. The wooden interior has been destroyed.
But which other features in the 850-year-old Gothic structure make it stand out in a city of iconic buildings?
At the same time two French billionaires have pledged to donate a total of 300 million euros to help reconstruct the Notre-Dame.
Their donations came as Paris firefighters declared Tuesday morning that “the entire fire is out”.
“A group of experts are analyzing all of the structures to establish the next stages,” Paris fire brigade spokesperson Gabriel Plus told reporters, quoted in a report by BuzzFeedNews.
François-Henri Pinault, chair and CEO of the international luxury group Kering, which includes Gucci and Saint Laurent, said Monday night he and his family will donate 100 million euros to the cathedral’s reconstruction.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the businessman, who is also president of holding company Groupe Artémis, which owns the fine arts auction house Christie’s, wrote: “My father [François Pinault] and I have decided to release as of now from the funds of Artemis a sum of 100 million euros to participate in the effort that will be necessary for the complete reconstruction of Notre Dame.”
