Inform es-Sultan Designated as UNESCO World Heritage Website, Igniting Controversy in Israel

The United Nations World Heritage Committee has voted to record the Inform es-Sultan archaeological website in Jericho as a “World Heritage Website in Palestine.” This determination was made at a convention in Riyadh. The newly designated website is situated in Jericho within the Israeli-occupied West Financial institution and incorporates ruins courting again to the ninth millennium BCE. Jericho itself is among the oldest frequently inhabited cities on this planet.

The Palestinian Authority Overseas Affairs Ministry welcomed the choice, stating that it’s an acknowledgment of Jericho’s cultural, financial, and political significance. They view it as a testomony to 10,000 years of human improvement. PA Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Rula Ma’ayah emphasised the importance of the choice, calling the positioning an integral and precious a part of various Palestinian heritage.

Nevertheless, the Israel Ministry of Overseas Affairs expressed disapproval of the choice, seeing it as one other instance of the Palestinians’ cynical use of UNESCO and politicization of the group. Jericho is situated within the Jordan Valley, between the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. In 2010, it celebrated being the oldest walled metropolis on this planet, courting again to the fashionable Stone Age.