Sources in Paris said that an international cultural heritage conservation organization on Friday decided to recommend tombs dating from an ancient Korean dynasty to be placed on the World Heritage List.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the decision was made at a closed-door meeting of the International Council for Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), during which cultural experts deliberated on historical sites and relics that had earlier been nominated by member countries for World Heritage status.

The sources said the meeting resulted in a decision to recommend the World Heritage Convention to nominate the Korean tombs, located in a number of sites throughout North Korea and China, as a World Heritage.

North Korea applied in January 2002 for 63 Goguryeo tombs in its provinces of Hwanghae and Pyongan to be added to the heritage list.

The decision comes amid a growing controversy between South Korea and China over the latter's claim to what many here perceive as a discrete part of ancient Korean history.