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Palestinians applaud UNESCO vote denying Israeli claims to Jerusalem
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday welcomed a resolution passed by the UN’s cultural body denying Israeli claims to any part of Jerusalem, while alleging that Israel poses a threat to the city’s heritage sites.
Submitted to UNESCO’s Executive Board by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar and Sudan, the resolution on “Occupied Palestine” indicated that Israel has no legal or historical rights anywhere in Jerusalem. It passed with 22 votes in favor, 23 abstentions, 10 opposed, and representatives of three countries absent.
Throughout the resolution text Israel is referred to as the “occupying power” in Jerusalem, indicating that it has no legal or historical ties to any part of the city.
In a statement, the Palestinian ministry thanked UNESCO for “reaffirming the centrality of Jerusalem to world heritage as well as the need to confront the dangers posed by the illegal practices of Israel, the occupying power.”
Countries that supported the vote have “honored their commitments in relation to the resolution and the principles enshrined therein, including affording international heritage sites due protection without prejudice and political considerations,” it said.
Noting Israeli diplomatic efforts to thwart the resolution, the statement said that Palestinians were “mindful of the cynical and misleading efforts by the occupying power to deflect attention from the real issues at hand.”
“We are happy that this campaign of intimidation, political bullying, and misinformation failed to achieve its desired results and was unable to derail the discussions and decision-making of states from the real and important issues addressed in the resolution.”
Israeli officials condemned the outcome of the vote, but, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, were quick to cheer what was perceived as a diplomatic improvement for Israel.
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