Palestine foreign ministry thanks Jordan for UNESCO efforts

AMMAN — The Palestinian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday expressed its appreciation for the Kingdom's stance on Jerusalem during the 43rd session of UNESCO World Heritage Committee currently being held in Azerbaijan.

Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad Maliki thanked Jordan for its efforts to prepare a resolution on Jerusalem that supports the consensus to keep the Holy City on the list of endangered world heritage sites.

Maliki also expressed his gratitude over the Kingdom's support for an appendix related to Israeli violations against UNESCO treaties, as well as the effect of Israeli practices on heritage sites and the falsification of historical and cultural records, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Reaffirming that all Israeli attempts to alter realities will fail, the minister said that the Church of the Nativity was no longer in danger, and called for a permanent UNESCO delegate to be sent to Jerusalem to document Israeli violations and Judaisation efforts to change the city's religious, historical and cultural status quo.

The minister also expressed his thanks to members of the World Heritage Committee for unanimously agreeing to keep Hebron city, the Old City and the Ibrahimi Mosque on the list of endangered world heritage sites.

He also urged the international community to fully uphold their responsibilities and take measures to hold the occupation accountable for its crimes against Palestinian heritage, culture and history in Jerusalem and the other cities, calling on international organisations, especially UNESCO, to protect Jerusalem's Islamic and Christian identity from distortion. 

Also on Wednesday, the Royal Committee for Jerusalem Affairs reaffirmed its support for the internationally- recognised Hashemite Custodianship of Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, urging Arab and Muslim nations and justice-advocating countries to follow suit. 

The committee, in a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, said that Israeli measures hinder efforts to achieve envisioned peace. 

Abdullah Kanaan, secretary general of the committee, said that the so-called “pilgrimage road”, which was recently opened, represents Israel's distortion of facts that aim at misleading public opinion.

The secretary general called on UNESCO and other organisations to take action to stop Israeli violations and urge Israel to implement international legitimacy resolutions that guarantee the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital.