NEW YORK, Oct. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC
deplored the UNESCO World Heritage Committee adoption today of a
resolution seeking to erase the age-old Jewish connection to the
Old City of Jerusalem. The measure passed by a vote of 10 to 2,
with 8 abstentions.
The resolution, "The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls,"
follows the UNESCO Executive Board resolution of October 13 that deleted Jewish references from
holy sites in Jerusalem.
"In back-to-back measures, during the holiest month in Judaism,
member states of two UNESCO bodies have thrown truth to the wind.
Instead, they have succumbed to the pernicious designs of the
Palestinian Authority (PA) and Arab countries that have long sought
to exploit this forum to castigate Israel and deny the indisputable link of the
Jewish people with Jerusalem,"
said AJC CEO David Harris. "It would
be like refusing to recognize Islam's connection to Mecca and Catholicism's ties to Rome. This step may be self-satisfying to the
Palestinian leadership and its allies, but, let's be clear, it
moves us further away from any prospect of peace and
coexistence."
Over the years, the World Heritage Committee has adopted 50
resolutions providing for the inscription of properties around the
world – mostly in countries ravaged by armed conflicts or afflicted
by natural disasters and other adverse conditions – on the "List of
World Heritage in Danger." These resolutions have uniformly
employed descriptive, technical language.
Conversely, the resolution adopted today, reaffirming the
inscription of the Old City of Jerusalem on the "List of World
Heritage in Danger" in 1982, is replete with political terms.
Like the UNESCO decision, the World Heritage Committee
resolution repeatedly refers to the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest
site, only by its Muslim name, Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif, and ignores any Jewish, as
well as Christian, connection to this site.
For the record, Judaism -- and the centrality of Jerusalem to Jewish identity, worship, and
history -- predates Islam by millennia, and Christianity, with its
linkage to Biblical sites in Jerusalem, predates Islam by centuries. The
only time adherents of all three religions have enjoyed complete
freedom of worship in Jerusalem
has been under Israeli administration.
Laudably, both UN Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova criticized the October 13 UNESCO action on Jerusalem.
That measure was adopted by a plurality (24), but not a
majority, of voting countries, the largest number of whom either
abstained (26) or voted against (6). Subsequently, Brazil and Mexico, which voted in favor, voiced regret
for their decision, and Italy,
which abstained, later said it should have voted "no."
Ban Ki-moon reaffirmed the
importance of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls for the three
monotheistic religions. "The Al Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram al-Sharif, the sacred shrine of
Muslims, is also the Har HaBayit – or Temple Mount – whose Western
Wall is the holiest place in Judaism, a few steps away from the
Saint Sepulcher church and the Mount of Olives, which is revered by
Christians," he said.
"Any perceived undertaking to repudiate the undeniable common
reference for these sites does not serve the interests of peace and
will only feed violence and radicalism," the Secretary-General
added.
"To deny, conceal or erase any of the Jewish, Christian or
Muslim traditions undermines the integrity of the site, and runs
counter to the reasons that justified its inscription on the UNESCO
World Heritage list," said Bokova.
Members of the World Heritage Committee are: Angola, Azerbaijan, Burkina
Faso, Croatia, Cuba, Finland, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, South
Korea, Tunisia,
Turkey, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe. Voting is by secret ballot.
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SOURCE American Jewish Committee