The United Nations Globe Heritage Committee voted to list the archaeological web-site of Tel es-Sultan in Jericho as a “Globe Heritage Web-site in Palestine.” This selection was created at a conference in Riyadh. The newly designated web-site is situated in Jericho in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and consists of ruins dating back to the ninth millennium BC. Jericho itself is one particular of the oldest constantly inhabited cities in the planet.
The Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the selection, saying it was a recognition of Jericho’s cultural, financial and political value. They see it as a testament to ten,000 years of human improvement. PA Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Rula Ma’aiah emphasized the value of this selection, calling the web-site an integral and beneficial component of the diverse Palestinian heritage.
Nevertheless, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its disapproval of the selection, seeing it as yet another instance of the cynical use of UNESCO by the Palestinians and the politicization of the organization. Jericho is situated in the Jordan Valley, in between the Jordan River in the east and Jerusalem in the west. In 2010, it became popular as the oldest walled city in the planet, dating back to the contemporary Stone Age.