American UN Mission Blasts Anti-Israel UNESCO Resolution for Denying ‘Historic Connections’ Between Jewish People and Jerusalem
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by Ben Cohen
The Western Wall and Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Photo: Paul Arps via Wikimedia Commons.
A spokesperson for the American UN mission has roundly condemned the anti-Israel resolution that was passed by the global intergovernmental body’s cultural agency at a meeting in Paris on Tuesday.
“Once again, the United States rejects the adoption of these anti-Israel resolutions at UNESCO,” the spokesperson told The Algemeiner. “Like other parts of the UN system, UNESCO is too often used as a vehicle by member states inclined to deride and delegitimize the State of Israel. Although several of these anti-Israel resolutions are typically adopted biannually at UNESCO, over time they have become increasingly political in nature, and now attempt to deny the historic connections of the Jewish people to the holy sites of Jerusalem.”
The spokesperson continued: “These biased resolutions are counterproductive to the core work of UNESCO, discredit the organization, and do nothing to advance Israeli-Palestinian issues. There is no place for them in an organization that is meant to be impartial. The United States will continue to object to efforts to politicize the organization and its important function on world heritage issues.”
“Such politicized efforts distract from the important work of UNESCO on initiatives like Holocaust education, countering violent extremism and protection of journalists. We are disappointed these kind of resolutions continue to receive attention in UNESCO, and we will continue to advocate for the fair treatment of Israel in all international fora. That said, we are encouraged by the diminishing levels of support for these resolutions, and we are grateful for those member nations who today voted against the resolution,” the spokesperson concluded.
Ten UNESCO member states — the US, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Togo, Ukraine and the UK — voted against the resolution on Tuesday. Twenty-two nations voted “yes,” while 23 abstained and three were absent.
The decreasing number of “yes” votes compared to similar past resolutions was hailed by a the pro-Israel NGO UN Watch as a “moral victory.”
