Sites Listed on UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in the State of Palestine commends the adoption of decisions by the World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on July 23, 2024, during its 46th session held in New Delhi, India. These decisions pertain to the preservation and protection of Palestinian sites listed on the World Heritage List in Danger. The unanimously adopted decisions concern the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls, Hebron/ the Old City, and Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines – Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem- Battir. These decisions emphasize maintaining these sites on the World Heritage List in Danger due to the repeated violations by the Israeli occupation authorities against the World Heritage Convention and other related conventions, which impact the Outstanding Universal Value of these sites.
The decision regarding Jerusalem and its annex reaffirmed the legal status of East Jerusalem as an occupied city and the importance of maintaining the historic status quo. It detailed the Israeli occupation's violations and warned of their impact on the site, particularly the ongoing attacks on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and other Islamic and Christian holy places. These violations include actions in the Moroccan Quarter (Haret al-Magharbeh), obstruction of restoration and maintenance work, land confiscation, construction projects, illegal archaeological excavations around and beneath the Al-Aqsa compound, the development project of the Buraq/ Western Wall, Plaza of the Al-Aqsa compound, the cable car project, and the seizure of church properties.
The decision concerning Hebron and its annex condemned the continuous and illegal practices of the Israeli occupation authorities in the Old City and the Ibrahimi Mosque compound. These practices include excavation, construction work, and the creation of settler roads, which result in various forms of deprivation of freedom of movement and access to places of worship, aiming to impose new facts on the ground and change the social, cultural, and political character of the Ibrahimi Mosque compound and the Old City. The decision also denounced building an elevator in the Ibrahimi Mosque compound due to its impact on the site's values, integrity, and authenticity. It called on Israel, the occupying power, to cease these violations in compliance with UNESCO conventions and decisions.
The decision on Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines – Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem, Battir, highlighted the illegal practices of the Israeli occupation authorities, particularly the construction of a tunnel and bypass road, land leveling, and the establishment and expansion of Israeli settlement outposts within the World Heritage property. It also addressed violations and practices by settlers, such as the removal of olive trees, preventing their cultivation, and restricting farmers' access to their lands.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities praises the Palestinian political and diplomatic efforts that led to the adoption of these decisions and the support of the majority of world countries for the State of Palestine and its people's established and unchanging rights. It calls on the Director-General of UNESCO to exert serious pressure on the Israeli occupation authorities, the occupying power, to compel them to respect relevant international treaties, cease all practices and measures that harm Palestinian heritage, and preserve it in accordance with these treaties.