PM Netanyahu says U.N. cultural body “has lost all legitimacy” – President Rivlin: UNESCO has disgraced itself – Opposition Leader Herzog: Agency “gives diplomacy a bad name” – U.S. lawmakers urge UNESCO “not to rewrite Jerusalem’s history.”

By Shlomo Cesana, Gideon Allon, Mati Tuchfeld, Daniel Siryoti, Yoni Hersch, Yori Yalon, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff

The UNESCO decision denying Jewish links to the Temple Mount is an “ignorant attempt to change history,” Israel says

Israel on Thursday leveled scathing criticism at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for passing a controversial resolution denying any Jewish link to the Temple Mount and Western Wall in Jerusalem.

Condemnation for the “delusional,” “ignorant” and “disgraceful” decision was heard from across the political spectrum. U.S. lawmakers also lambasted the decision and urged UNESCO “not to rewrite Jerusalem’s history.”

The proposal, presented to UNESCO by the Palestinian Authority, along with Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and Sudan, condemns Israel on several issues over its care of the holy sites in Jerusalem.

Twenty-four UNESCO members voted in favor of the resolution, 26 abstained, and six opposed it. UNESCO’s Executive Board is scheduled to ratify the resolution next week.

UNESCO passed a similar resolution in April referring to the Temple Mount solely as Al-Aqsa mosque and to the Western Wall only as the Al-Buraq Plaza, drawing harsh criticism from Israel.

“To say Israel has no link to the Temple Mount is like saying that China has no link to the Great Wall, or that Egypt has no connection to the pyramids,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out. “With this absurd decision, UNESCO has lost what little legitimacy it still had.”

Netanyahu added that the decision demonstrates UNESCO’s ignorance of the Bible.

He also blasted UNESCO for taking part in the Palestinians’ “theater of the absurd,” saying, “It’s one thing that they [UNESCO] are not versed in the Bible, but I suggest the members of UNESCO visit the Arch of Titus in Rome, where you can see what the Romans brought back to Rome after they destroyed and pillaged the Temple 2,000 years ago. There you can see, engraved on the Arch of Titus, the seven-branched menorah, which is a symbol of the Jewish people and the symbol of the Jewish state today. Next, UNESCO will accuse Emperor Titus of Zionist propaganda.

“I believe that the historical truth is more powerful than this and the truth will prevail.”

The resolution was opposed by the United States, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Estonia.

It was backed by Russia, China, Brazil, Mexico, Egypt, South Africa, Algeria, Bangladesh, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, the Dominican Republic, Senegal, Sudan, Vietnam and Chad.

Albania, Argentina, Cameroon, the Ivory Coast, El Salvador, Spain, France, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Haiti, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Nepal, Uganda, Paraguay, South Korea, St. Kitts and Nevis, Slovenia, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Togo, Ukraine and Trinidad and Tobago chose to abstain.

Source:: Israpundit

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