On Tuesday the 18th of October, the executive board of UNESCO, an agency of the UN, adopted a resolution applauded by Palestinians. But it was quite upsetting to most of the Judeo-Christian world.
Euronews said in its article titled, UNESCO passes controversial Jerusalem resolution ,
“The motion refers to the area known to Jews as Temple Mount and to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif … the holy site, which was taken by Israel in the 1967 six-day war, has been a flash point of Israeli-Palestinian violence in recent years.”
Charges of Expunged History
Echoing the views of others, a writer for Fox News added,
“The declaration, which was initially submitted by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan, officially claims those sites as the “Cultural Heritage of Palestine.” In doing so, it disavows Jerusalem’s historical and religious connection with both Judaism and Christianity.”
The writer noted the irony of this happening at the exact time religious Jews and a number of Christians were observing the Biblical Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem and around the world.
Resolution, but No Resolution
According to the Qatar News site, Al Jazeera, in the article, UNESCO adopts anti-Israel resolution on al-Aqsa Mosque, the organization “also condemned Israel for restricting Muslim access to the site.”
Israel has acknowledged that has happened on rare occasions but said the daily Muslim imposed restrictions are much harsher.
The New Yorker Magazine tried to provide a balanced perspective about the Temple Mount or Haram al-Sharif in a 5th of November 2014 article, The Politics of Prayer at the Temple Mount. However, the article said,
“When Israel seized control, in 1967, its Prime Minister, Levi Eshkol, signed a law protecting all holy places …” Since then, only Muslims have been allowed to pray at the main compound … Non-Muslims may enter the Temple Mount at designated times, but are forbidden to pray there.”
A Second Vote
Not everyone at UNESCO is happy. Al Jazeera also wrote that,“UNESCO chief Irina Bokova had distanced herself from Thursday’s vote …”
The following statement from the Director-General Bokova was on the UNESCO site.
Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO
“As I have stated on many occasions, and most recently during the 40th session of the World Heritage Committee, Jerusalem is the sacred city of the three monotheistic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It is in recognition of this exceptional diversity, and this cultural and religious coexistence, that it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.”
But in spite of her statement, on Wednesday, October 26th a second resolution, similar to the first adopted by the Executive Board, was passed by the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO.
Photo Credits: Logo courtesy of UNESCO, UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
