Member of the PLO Executive Committee and Head of the Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine, Dr. Ramzi Khouri, welcomed UNESCO’s decision to inscribe the site ‘The Monastery of Saint Hilarion/Tell Umm Amer’ in Gaza on the World Heritage List and on the List of World Heritage in Danger, during the World Heritage Committee meeting in New Delhi, India. These decisions reiterate UNESCO’s role and mandate and reaffirm the need to confront the dangerous and illegal actions taken by Israel against Palestinian heritage and cultural sites.
Khouri warned about the severe impact of the escalating and illegal Israeli actions against Palestinian heritage sites in Gaza, due to Israel’s war, as well as, ongoing Israeli excavations in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem, including annexation plans that specifically target historical and archeological sites in Palestine.
Khouri called for urgent and immediate actions to protect the Palestinian people in the face of the continuing Israeli genocide and to ensure the unhindered passage of humanitarian aid into devasted Gaza. He also stressed the importance of safeguarding historical and heritage sites from Israeli assaults and confront Israeli plans, which aim to erase Palestinian heritage, narrative and history.
