UNESCO again condemns Israel’s presence in Jerusalem’s Old City

UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee passes a vote condemning Israeli policies in Jerusalem’s Old City. Ten member states vote yes, three no, and three countries abstain.

The Jordanian-sponsored resolution on the “Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls” is much softer than last year’s text, but Israel has rejected any attempt to politicize the issue of the holy sites in its capital in international bodies.

This year’s resolution still calls Israel “the occupying power” in the Old City and reaffirms previous UN resolutions denying the country’s claims to East Jerusalem, echoing a resolution passed in May by UNESCO’s executive board. It also “regrets the failure of the Israeli occupying authorities to cease the persistent excavations, tunneling, works, projects and other illegal practices in East Jerusalem, particularly in and around the Old City of Jerusalem, which are illegal under international law.”

However, Decision 41 COM 7A.36, as it is technically known, stresses “the importance of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls for the three monotheistic religions,” language not found in last year’s text. It also does not refer to the Temple Mount compound solely by its Muslim names, “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif,” as the 2016 resolution did, calling it simply “a Muslim holy site of worship.”

— Raphael Ahren