The United Nations World Heritage Committee voted on Sunday to declare the Inform es-Sultan archaeological website in Jericho a “World Heritage Site in Palestine.”
This resolution was reached throughout a convention held in Riyadh, as reported by UNESCO on its official X account, beforehand generally known as Twitter.
The Palestinian Authority embraced this resolution with enthusiasm, whereas Israel expressed its discontent.
The newly designated website, located in Jericho inside the Israeli-occupied West Financial institution, accommodates historic ruins relationship again to the ninth millennium BCE. Jericho itself holds the excellence of being one of many oldest repeatedly inhabited cities globally.
The Palestinian Authority International Affairs Ministry warmly welcomed the choice, describing it as a recognition of Jericho’s “cultural, economic, and political importance” and a testomony to “10,000 years of human progress.” This assertion was launched on Sunday.
PA Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Rula Ma’ayah, emphasised the choice’s significance, labeling the positioning as an indispensable and priceless a part of the varied Palestinian heritage. This assertion was relayed to CNN on Sunday.
Ma’ayah said, “The site’s exceptional universal value qualifies it to be included among the World Heritage sites.”
Conversely, the Israel Ministry of International Affairs disapproved of the choice, viewing it as “yet another instance of the Palestinians cynically using UNESCO and politicizing the organization.”
Jericho is positioned within the Jordan Valley, nestled between the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west.
In 2010, Jericho celebrated its standing because the world’s oldest walled metropolis, tracing its origins again to the trendy Stone Age.