Israel Suspends its Cooperation with UNESCO

Israel International News.com by Elad Benari

Israel announced on Wednesday that it will be suspending its cooperation with The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), due to its decision to declare Rachel’s Tomb a mosque. The suspension will be in place until the organization reverses its decision

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, who made the announcement regarding the suspension, said of the resolution by UNESCO: “This resolution was adopted by the Arab automatic majority, lead by the Palestinian Authority, in another attempt to de-legitimize Israel. UNESCO has become a rubber stamp for the PA.”

UNESCO’s recent vote called for Rachel's Tomb and the Tomb of the Patriarchs – the burial site of the other Biblical Patriarchs and Matriarchs – to be removed from Israel's National Heritage list.

The Palestinian Authority has claimed that Rachel's Tomb is holy to Muslims as the site of a mosque called the Bilal Bin Rabah Mosque. It demands control over both the tomb and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hevron, as well as the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.