UNESCO and the theft of the Temple Mount

"...UNESCO was founded to help ensure that tragedies such as the world wars and the Holocaust would never happen again by strengthening peace through education, science, culture, and intellectual cooperation among peoples.

To fulfill that mission, its decisions must rest upon verifiable historical, archaeological, scientific, and cultural evidence, inspired by the universal ethical principles upon which the organization was founded, rather than by temporary political interests.

UNESCO was not created to resolve theological disputes or to determine which religious tradition possesses greater spiritual legitimacy...

In October 2016, UNESCO adopted Resolution 200 EX/PX/DR.25, which reaffirms the importance of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls for the three monotheistic religions, while declaring that its objective is ‘to safeguard the cultural heritage of Palestine and the distinctive character of East Jerusalem.’

But UNESCO’s duty is to safeguard the cultural heritage of all peoples, not to prioritize the heritage of one people over another.

No majority vote, however large, can alter the principles upon which UNESCO was founded. As its own Preamble declares: ‘A peace based exclusively upon political and economic arrangements of governments would not secure the unanimous, lasting and sincere support of the peoples of the world.’...

In light of UNESCO’s founding principles, it is legitimate to ask whether Resolution 200 EX/PX/DR.25 remains faithful to the organization’s original mandate...

UNESCO should repeal Resolution 200 EX/PX/DR.25. The Member States that supported it should acknowledge their responsibility and publicly apologize for endorsing a resolution that distorts a site of universal historical heritage.

The United Nations, as UNESCO’s parent organization, should likewise recognize its institutional responsibility for validating decisions incompatible with the principles upon which both organizations were founded."