The UN cultural agency votes on two resolutions Tuesday on the occupied Palestinian territories which Israel believes ignore Jewish ties to religious sites in east Jerusalem.

Israel has suspended its cooperation with Paris-based UNESCO, which oversees World Heritage sites, over the controversial resolutions which were proposed by Arab countries.

They refer to “Occupied Palestine” and are critical of Israel’s management of Palestinian religious sites, but it is the names used to describe key sites that appear to have infuriated Israel the most.

They refer to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in east Jerusalem’s Old City — Islam’s third holiest site — without any reference to the site also being revered by Jews as the Temple Mount.

Last Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu complained that saying “Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount and Western Wall is like saying China has no connection to the Great Wall of China or Egypt has no connection to the pyramids.”

It is not the first time UNESCO has been the scene of tensions. Arab countries have sought to use the organisation to apply international pressure on Israel and its backers before.

In April, it passed a resolution condemning “Israeli aggressions and illegal measures against the freedom of worship and Muslims’ access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque”, also failing to mention the site’s Jewish name of the Temple Mount.

That led Netanyahu to propose a “seminar on Jewish history” for UN staff in Israel.

In 2011 the Palestinians were admitted as a member state of the organisation, which led the United States to suspend its payments to UNESCO.

The latest resolutions created unease at the top of the organisation, with Michael Worbs, who chairs UNESCO’s executive board, calling for Tuesday’s vote to be put off so a compromise could be worked out.

“We need more time and dialogue between the members of the board to reach a consensus,” he told AFP.

And UNESCO chief Irina Bokova distanced herself from the resolutions, saying in a statement: “Nowhere more than in Jerusalem do Jewish, Christian and Muslim heritage and traditions share space.”

Participants said the two resolutions, adopted by 24 votes to six with 26 abstentions and two absentees, were to be put Tuesday to UNESCO’s Executive Board, which generally votes with the line taken by committees. </s> UNESCO's executive board is meeting for a vote on a resolution that minimizes Jewish ties to holy sites in Jerusalem.

The board's decision is scheduled in the Paris-based organization around midday on Tuesday. A majority of those voting is required for adoption.

Israel last week suspended its ties with the U.N. cultural agency over the measure.

The draft resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine" and sponsored by several Arab countries, uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims, which includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray.

Israelis and many Jews around the world saw it as the latest example of an ingrained bias against Israel at the United Nations. </s> PARIS (AP) — UNESCO's executive board on Tuesday approved a resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem — and that has angered Israel's government and many Jews around the world.



The board adopted the measure by consensus in its morning session at Paris-based UNESCO. A draft form of the resolution had already been approved by a commission last week.



The resolution is not expected to have direct impact on Jerusalem itself, but it deepened tensions within UNESCO, which is also facing a diplomatic dispute between Japan and China that threatens funding.



The resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine," is the latest of several measures at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization over decades that Israelis see as evidence of ingrained anti-Israel bias within the United Nations, where Israel and its allies are far outnumbered by Arab countries and their supporters. Israel's concern has mounted since UNESCO states admitted Palestine as a member in 2011.



Israel last week suspended its ties with UNESCO over the draft resolution, which uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray.



Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem's Old City as the Temple Mount. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.



Israel had already suspended its funding to UNESCO when Palestinian membership was approved, along with the United States, which used to provide 22 percent of the agency's budget.



"We won't negotiate and we won't take part in these ugly games," the Israeli ambassador to UNESCO, Carmel Shama-Hacohen, told The Associated Press after the ratification. "There is no place for these games in UNESCO. This noble organization was established to preserve history, not to rewrite it."



The longstanding dispute is also linked to Israel's refusal to grant visas to UNESCO experts to go in the country and assess the level of preservation of the holy sites in Jerusalem.



Elias Sanbar, Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO, told the AP this refusal to allow a UNESCO mission was a "very big problem."



"The aim of the mission was not to say that Israel was an occupying power or not, the whole world knows it," he told the AP. "The aim was to say: according to the field of competence of UNESCO, are the monuments and historical sites of UNESCO well-preserved, and if restored, well-restored according to the rules of restoration?"



On this issue, Shama-Hacohen said "there will not be any mission to Jerusalem under political decisions —with the words 'occupying power' with false allegations of Israel, we will never agree to such a mission. Jerusalem is an open city. Jerusalem is a transparent city."



Israel and the Palestinian authority are not members of the executive board of UNESCO. </s> 39 US lawmakers urge UNESCO to oppose resolution denying Jewish heritage in Jerusalem

(JTA) — Thirty-nine members of Congress have urged a United Nations agency to oppose a resolution that diminishes Jewish and Christian ties to the Old City of Jerusalem.

A letter signed by Democratic and Republican lawmakers from the House of Representatives and Senate was sent earlier in the week to the executive board of UNESCO, the world body’s educational, scientific and cultural Organization, which is set to discuss the resolution on Thursday while meeting in Paris. A discussion and vote on the controversial resolution was postponed from the board’s meeting in July.

The UNESCO resolution reportedly refers to the Temple Mount several times as Al Haram Al Sharif, the Islamic term for the Temple Mount, without mentioning that it is the holiest site in Judaism, according to UN Watch. It also uses the term Buraq Plaza, placing Western Wall Plaza in quotes, appearing to deny a Jewish connection to the site. The Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron is referred to as the al-Ḥaram al-Ibrahimi and Rachel’s Tomb, outside Bethlehem, is noted as the Bilal ibn Rabaḥ Mosque.

A similar resolution was adopted by UNESCO’s executive board in April.

“UNESCO’s mission is to build intercultural understanding through protection of heritage and support for cultural diversity. This unnecessarily divisive and selective resolution undermines the very purpose and integrity of UNESCO by seeking to rewrite Jerusalem’s history, rejects Jerusalem’s multi-cultural heritage, and undercuts Jerusalem’s extraordinary diversity,” the U.S. lawmakers’ letter says.

It adds: “Attempting to erase the Jewish and Christian connection to this sacred city will further damage the prospects of peace between Israel and the Palestinians. It is incumbent upon all Member States of the Executive Board to respect and protect the religious, cultural, and historical significance of Jerusalem as they would all other World Heritage sites and to uphold the values and ideals enshrined in UNESCO’s Constitution.”

In a statement, Ros-Lehtinen called the resolution “irresponsible and reprehensible,” and said it “falsely lays the blame for the violence on Israel since last October while ignoring the acts of terror and violence that are being incited by the Palestinian Authority and Abu Mazen,” the nom de guerre for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Cruz said in a statement: “The United Nations’ obsessive hostility towards Israel will be on display yet again this week as UNESCO considers another blatantly biased resolution that unjustly singles out our close ally Israel with false accusations and criticism, and attempts to erase the specific deep-rooted, historical connection of Jews and Christians to Jerusalem, Israel’s eternal capital.” Cruz said in a statement.

Ros-Lehtinen and Cruz also sent a separate letter to Samantha Powers, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, and Crystal Nix-Hines, the U.S. envoy to UNESCO, urging them to use the “full voice, vote, and influence of the United States to defeat the measure.”

During an event Thursday at the president’s residence in Jerusalem in honor of the upcoming holiday of Sukkot, Reuven Rivlin also addressed the upcoming UNESCO vote.

“The festivals of Israel all highlight the inextricable bond between our people and our land, and no forum or body in the world can come and deny the connection between the Jewish people, the Land of Israel and Jerusalem – and any such body that does so simply embarrasses itself,” he said, adding: “We can understand criticism, but you cannot change history.”

Meanwhile, Israel’s Foreign Ministry has asked the Holy See, which holds nonvoting observer status at UNESCO, to assist in defeating the resolution, arguing that the resolution also harms Christians, Ynet reported. </s> UNESCO's executive board on Tuesday approved a resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem — and that has angered Israel's government and many Jews around the world.

The board adopted the measure by consensus in its morning session at Paris-based UNESCO. A draft form of the resolution had already been approved by a commission last week.

The resolution is not expected to have direct impact on Jerusalem itself, but it deepened tensions within UNESCO, which is also facing a diplomatic dispute between Japan and China that threatens funding.

The resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine," is the latest of several measures at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization over decades that Israelis see as evidence of ingrained anti-Israel bias within the United Nations, where Israel and its allies are far outnumbered by Arab countries and their supporters. Israel's concern has mounted since UNESCO states admitted Palestine as a member in 2011.

Israel last week suspended its ties with UNESCO over the draft resolution, which uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims. The site includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray.

Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem's Old City as the Temple Mount. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Israel had already suspended its funding to UNESCO when Palestinian membership was approved, along with the United States, which used to provide 22 percent of the agency's budget.

The longstanding dispute is also linked to Israel's refusal to grant visas to UNESCO experts to go in the country and assess the level of preservation of the holy sites in Jerusalem.

And now Japan, UNESCO's second-biggest funder, is threatening to halt funding. Japan announced last week it has withheld its annual UNESCO dues, saying it wants to make sure the U.N. body properly functions to foster trust among member nations. The decision is believed linked to UNESCO's listing last year of Chinese Rape of Nanking documents as a memory of the world. </s> Palestinian deputy ambassador to UNESCO Mounir Anastas, speaks at the organization's headquarters in Paris on October 17, 2016

PARIS - A Palestinian representative to UNESCO defended on Tuesday the omission of any reference to Jewish claims to the Temple Mount in a contentious resolution passed last week about Jerusalem.

Mounir Anastas told reporters in Paris, where UNESCO is headquartered, that the vote was "about occupation."

Israel has protested the resolution's failure to include any reference to the site where al-Aqsa Mosque stands as revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, or the site where two ancient temples once stood.

Elias Sanbar, a second Palestinian representative to the organization, said that Jordan had "wanted" to include the Jewish reference.

Sanbar asserted that this was "impossible." He claimed that the Geneva Conventions required referring to the site by its pre-occupation name, or the period before Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day War.

Sanbar also suggested, however, that it may have been possible to revise the resolution to include a Jewish reference to the site. "This text is not holy, it can be changed," he said.

Anastas accused reporters of going around in circles about the issue. "You're just asking the same question over and over again,” he said. "This resolution is about occupation not about a name.”

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UNESCO officials, who have already issued clarifications to Israel about the resolution, said they would have preferred a more consensual process.

“UNESCO has always worked by consensus, but not this time. Twenty-four member states voted in favor of the resolution, 26 abstained 6 voted against it,” UNESCO media chief George Papagiannis said.

Israel's ambassador to UNESCO, Carmel Shama Hacohen called Palestinian diplomacy over the resolution "brutal."

“This was not a resolution aiming to protect Jerusalem, it was a political initiative meant to harm Israel’s sovereignty and to rewrite history” Hacohen said. “It’s not legitimate morally or historically.”

“No other country has been treated this way in UNESCO," Hacohen added.

Hacohen said was hopeful, though, that Israel would someday reverse the decision the same as a 1975 United Nations resolution condemning Zionism as racism was eventually revoked. </s> (JTA) — The executive board of the United Nations cultural agency voted to adopt a controversial resolution that denies a Jewish connection to the Old City of Jerusalem.

The board reportedly formally approved the resolution on Tuesday morning in the final day of its meeting in Paris.

The approval comes five days after the resolution passed in a preliminary vote of the executive board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. In that vote, there were 2 4 votes in favor and 6 against, with 26 countries abstaining. The United States, the United Kingdom and Germany were among those that voted against the resolution. They were joined by Lithuania, the Netherlands and Estonia. Other European countries abstained.

On Monday, Mexico changed its vote from “in favor” to abstain, saying in a statement” “Changing the vote reiterates the recognition that the government of Mexico gives to the undeniable link of the Jewish people to cultural heritage located in East Jerusalem. It also reflects the deep appreciation that this government has for the Jewish community and in particular for their significant contributions to the welfare and economic, social and cultural development of Mexico.”

Mexico fired its Jewish ambassador to UNESCO, however, after Andre Roemer in a personal protest walked out of last week’s vote in Paris, leaving his deputy to cast the country’s vote.

Discussion and a vote on the resolution were postponed from the board’s meeting in July.

The UNESCO resolution reportedly refers to the Temple Mount several times as Al Haram Al Sharif, the Islamic term for the Temple Mount, without mentioning that it is the holiest site in Judaism, according to UN Watch. It also uses the term Buraq Plaza, placing Western Wall Plaza in quotes, appearing to deny a Jewish connection to the site. The Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron is referred to as the al-Ḥaram al-Ibrahimi and Rachel’s Tomb, outside Bethlehem, is noted as the Bilal ibn Rabaḥ Mosque.

A similar resolution was adopted by UNESCO’s executive board in April. </s> JERUSALEM -- Israel suspended cooperation with UNESCO on Friday, a day after the United Nations cultural agency adopted a draft resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem.

UNESCO's draft resolution, titled "Occupied Palestine" and sponsored by several Arab countries, uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims, which includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. The validated resolution is expected early next week, but the wording is unlikely to change.

The draft resolution diminished the links to Judaism of two important holy sites in Jerusalem's Old City.

The text refers to the site known by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount only by its Muslim name. The draft resolution refers to the Muslim site of Al-Buraq Plaza without quotations, but puts the site's Jewish name, the Western Wall Plaza, in quotations.

"Following the shameful decision by UNESCO members to deny history and ignore thousands of years of Jewish ties to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, I have notified the Israel National Commission for UNESCO to suspend all professional activities with the international organization," Bennett said.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said he was "outraged" by the resolution. "Would UNESCO vote to deny the Christian connection to the Vatican? Or the Muslim connection to Mecca? The UNESCO vote claims that there is no connection between the Jewish people and the Western Wall. In fact, it is the UNESCO vote that has no connection to reality."

UNESCO chief Irina Bokova expressed dismay with the draft resolution, which came from member states, saying that "different peoples worship the same places, sometimes under different names. The recognition, use of and respect for these names is paramount."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dubbed the resolution "absurd" after it was announced and on Friday tweeted: "What's next? A UNESCO decision denying the connection between peanut butter and jelly? Batman and Robin? Rock and roll?"

Israel captured east Jerusalem, with sites holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 Mideast war. Palestinians claim the territory as part of their future state, and its fate is one of the most contentious issues in the decades-old conflict.

Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem's Old City as the Temple Mount, site of the two Jewish biblical temples. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third-holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Bokova condemned the religious and cultural divisions being played out in the U.N. body, which was created in part to further cross-cultural understanding.

"When these divisions carry over into UNESCO, an organization dedicated to dialogue and peace, they prevent us from carrying out our mission," she said.

Bokova has no official control over resolutions, which are sponsored and voted on by member-states.

Bennett, the Israeli minister, said Bokova's comments were insufficient and urged the body to take action.

"The moral support provided by UNESCO to terror will end only when the organization cancels yesterday's outrageous decision, which denies history to please Israel haters. Words are important, but they are not a replacement to the actions of the organization she heads."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's government in the West Bank welcomed the resolution, as did Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules the Gaza Strip. A spokesman for Hamas, which is pledged to Israel's destruction, called the resolution a "step in the right direction."

Several countries hostile to Israel, such as Iran and Lebanon, voted in favor of the resolution -- as did Egypt, which has a peace treaty with Israel. Qatar and Oman also voted in favor.

Separately, Japan withheld dues for UNESCO, saying it wants to make sure the organization functions properly, a gesture seen as a protest against the registration for world heritage status of China's documents relating to the Nanking massacre.

Japan disputes China's historical views on the 1937 massacre of Chinese citizens by the Japanese military. China says up to 300,000 people were killed, while Japanese nationalists have largely played down or denied the incident. Japan also has criticized UNESCO's listing last year of Chinese Nanking documents as a memory of the world.

On Friday, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, when asked by a reporter, confirmed that Japan withheld UNESCO dues of nearly $40 million for this year. He refused to say whether it was to protest the agency's move to list the Chinese documents.

A Foreign Ministry official later said that Japan is watching to see if UNESCO is living up to its founding purpose of promoting peace among member nations through education, and will consider the timing of its payment while examining whether the U.N. body is operating appropriately.

Japan provides 9.7 percent of UNESCO budget, the body's second-largest donor after the U.S., which is at 22 percent. The U.S. has suspended its dues since 2011, when the "State of Palestine" began participating in UNESCO.

Information for this article was contributed by Mari Yamaguchi of The Associated Press. </s> JERUSALEM – Israel suspended cooperation with UNESCO on Friday, a day after the U.N. cultural agency adopted a draft resolution that Israel says denies the deep historic Jewish connection to holy sites in Jerusalem.

UNESCO’s draft resolution, titled “Occupied Palestine” and sponsored by several Arab countries, uses only the Islamic name for a hilltop compound sacred to both Jews and Muslims, which includes the Western Wall, a remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where Jews can pray. The validated resolution is expected early next week, but the wording is unlikely to change.

Israelis and many Jews around the world viewed it as the latest example of an ingrained anti-Israel bias at the United Nations, where Israel and its allies are far outnumbered by Arab countries and their supporters.

The draft resolution, seen by The Associated Press, diminished the links to Judaism of two important holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City.

The text refers to the site known by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount only by its Muslim name. The draft resolution refers to the Muslim site of Al-Buraq Plaza without quotations, but puts the site’s Jewish name, the Western Wall Plaza, in inverted commas.

“Following the shameful decision by UNESCO members to deny history and ignore thousands of years of Jewish ties to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, I have notified the Israel National Commission for UNESCO to suspend all professional activities with the international organization,” Bennett said.

Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said he was “outraged” by the resolution. “Would UNESCO vote to deny the Christian connection to the Vatican? Or the Muslim connection to Mecca? The UNESCO vote claims that there is no connection between the Jewish people and the Western Wall. In fact, it is the UNESCO vote that has no connection to reality.”

UNESCO chief Irina Bokova expressed dismay with the draft resolution, which came from member states, saying that “different peoples worship the same places, sometimes under different names. The recognition, use of and respect for these names is paramount.”

The spat is the latest in Israel’s rocky relations with UNESCO, which it accuses of making decisions out of political considerations.

Israel captured east Jerusalem, with sites holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 Mideast war. Palestinians claim the territory as part of their future state, and its fate is one of the most contentious issues in the decades-old conflict.

Jews refer to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem’s Old City as the Temple Mount, site of the two Jewish biblical temples. Muslims refer to it as al-Haram al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, and it includes the Al-Aqsa mosque and the golden Dome of the Rock. It is the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Bokova condemned the religious and cultural divisions being played out in the U.N. body that was created in part to further cross-cultural understanding.

“When these divisions carry over into UNESCO, an organization dedicated to dialogue and peace, they prevent us from carrying out our mission,” she said.

Bokova has no official control over resolutions, which are sponsored and voted on by member states.

Bennet, the Israeli minister, said Bokova’s comments were insufficient and urged the body to take action.

“The moral support provided by UNESCO to terror will end only when the organization cancels yesterday’s outrageous decision, which denies history to please Israel haters. Words are important, but they are not a replacement to the actions of the organization she heads.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s government in the West Bank welcomed the resolution, as did Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules the Gaza Strip. A spokesman for Hamas, which is pledged to Israel’s destruction, called the resolution a “step in the right direction.”

Several countries hostile to Israel such as Iran and Lebanon voted in favor of the resolution – as did Egypt, which has a peace treaty with Israel. Qatar and Oman also voted in favor.

Amid stalled peace talks with the Palestinians and Iran’s growing regional influence, Netanyahu has been touting what he calls strong behind-the-scenes contacts with moderate Sunni countries. He hasn’t named them but they are presumed to be Saudi Arabia and smaller Gulf states.

The dispute over Jerusalem’s holiest site ignited a wave of violence this time last year. Since then, Palestinian attackers have killed 36 Israelis and two visiting Americans, mainly in stabbings. About 220 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, most of them identified as attackers by Israel. The Palestinians, as well as Israeli and international rights groups, say Israeli forces have in some cases used excessive force to subdue attackers.

Israel has blamed the violence on incitement by Palestinian political and religious leaders, compounded on social media sites that glorify violence. The Palestinians say it is rooted in some 50 years of military rule and fading hopes for independence.
UNESCO's executive board approves the "Occupied Palestine" resolution which reaffirms the cultural heritage of Palestine, especially East Jerusalem, and criticizes certain Israeli actions regarding the Palestinian territories. For the land in Jerusalem where the Al-Aqsa Mosque stands, the board uses only Islamic naming terms without also mentioning Jewish or Christian historical references.