A photo for the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls. UNESCO/Leila Maziz
In a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Emigration, and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs, Egypt reiterated its rejection of Israeli violations in the West Bank.
Egypt emphasized that these violations, particularly in Jerusalem's Old City, aim at altering its current status.
The ministry called on the Israeli government to halt all its illegal actions intended to change the status of East Jerusalem.
Furthermore, it urged Israel to respect the existing status of the Islamic and Christian holy sites and adhere to relevant international resolutions.
The World Heritage Committee's 46th session in India’s New Delhi approved three decisions unanimously to add three historic sites in Palestine to the list of sites in danger.
These sites are the Old City of Jerusalem and its walls, Al-Khalil Old Town, and the Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines - Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem, Battir.
The decisions came as a result of the repeated Israeli violations of the World Heritage Convention and other relevant agreements, the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a statement on Tuesday.
The List of World Heritage in Danger aims to inform the world about conditions that threaten the characteristics of these sites and encourage corrective action.
State parties under the World Heritage Convention receive financial assistance to support their efforts in protecting cultural or natural heritage sites inscribed in this list.
UNESCO decisions detailed
The first approved decision affirms the legal status of East Jerusalem as an occupied city and the necessity of preserving its historical status, according to Palestine's ministry.
The decision also lists Israeli violations including continuous attacks on the Al-Aqsa Mosque and other Islamic and Christian holy sites.
In addition, it highlights Israel's hindrance to restoration and maintenance efforts there, seizing land, illegal construction projects, and unauthorized excavations near the mosque.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates has called on UNESCO to dispatch a representative of the director-general to Jerusalem and send a monitoring mission to observe Israeli violations, aligning with the adopted decision.
Meanwhile, the second decision condemns the ongoing and unauthorized Israeli practices in the Al-Khalil Old Town and the Al-Ibrahimi Mosque.
The Palestinian tourism ministry said the decision highlights excavations and road construction by settlers, which place restrictions on movement and access to worship sites.
It added that these practices aim to enforce new realities and alter the area's social, cultural, and political features.
The third decision, regarding the Land of Olives and Vines, addresses illegal Israeli actions such as tunnel construction, establishment of a bypass road, land confiscation, and settlement expansion within the World Heritage site.
It also highlights violations like uprooting olive trees, preventing cultivation, and denying farmers access to their lands.
The foreign ministry called for “real international pressure” to force the Israeli government to halt its illegal unilateral actions in the Palestinian lands and impose global sanctions on Israel.
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