World sites vie for UNESCO spot in Riyadh as Venice risks downgrade

More than 50 world sites hope for inclusion on the UN's coveted heritage list at a meeting opening in Riyadh Sunday, while some incumbents, including Venice and Kyiv, face the risk of a downgrade.At the meeting in Saudi Arabia some well established sites, including Venice and Kyiv, will be in the spotlight for a possible "at risk" qualification, the first stop towards exclusion from the list that features 1,157 sites, of which 900 are cultural, 218 natural and 39 mixed.