UNESCO Decrees that Two Christian Holy Sites in Israel are now Mosques!

**vector7** · November 19th, 2010, 15:12

UNESCO Decrees that Two Christian Holy Sites in Israel are now Mosques

1. UNESCO: Rachel's Tomb is a Mosque - Israel National News

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) voted recently to officially declare Rachel's Tomb to be a mosque. UNESCO director Irena Bokova had previously stated "concern" at Israel's decision to treat the tomb as a heritage site. The vote called for Rachel's Tomb and the Tomb of the Patriarchs - the burial site of the other Biblical Patriarchs and Matriarchs - to be removed from Israel's National Heritage list. (Read more)

2. PM slams UNESCO calling Rachel's Tomb a mosque - Jerusalem Post

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Friday slammed world culture organization UNESCO's decision to characterize the site of Rachel's Tomb as a Muslim mosque."The attempt to separate the nation of Israel from its cultural heritage is absurd," said the prime minister. A statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office read, "It is unfortunate that an organization that was established with the goal of promoting the cultural preservation of historical sites around the world, is attempting due to political reasons to uproot the connection between the nation of Israel and its cultural heritage." (Read more)

**vector7** · November 19th, 2010, 15:13

UNESCO recognizes Rachel's Tomb as mosque
Institute for Contemporary Affairs ^ | 2 December 2007 | Nadav Shragai
Posted on Sunday, October 31, 2010 8:58:31 AM by JCPA-JerusalemCenter

The Palestinian Authority and the Jewish Holy Sites in the West Bank: Rachel's Tomb as a Test Case

* Rachel's Tomb lies on the northern outskirts of Bethlehem, about 460 meters (about 500 yards) south of the Jerusalem municipal border, and for more than 1,700 years has been identified as the tomb of the matriarch Rachel.

* According to the armistice agreement signed on April 3, 1949, Jordan was to allow Israel "free access to the Holy Places and cultural institutions and use of the cemetery on the Mount of Olives." In practice, Jordan did not allow Jews free access to their holy places, and for 19 years, until 1967, Jews could not go to the Western Wall, Rachel's Tomb, the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, Joseph's Tomb in Shechem (Nablus), or other sites sacred to Jews which remained in Jordanian hands.

* The Gaza-Jericho Agreement signed in May 1994 stated: "The Palestinian Authority shall ensure free access to all holy sites in the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area." The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement, signed on the White House lawn on September 28, 1995, dealt with the status of 23 places holy to Jews. The Palestinians promised to assure freedom of access to those places. However, the Palestinians either made access extremely difficult or prevented it entirely.

* In 2000, after hundreds of years of recognizing the site as Rachel's Tomb, Muslims began calling it the "Bilal ibn Rabah mosque" - a name that has since entered the national Palestinian discourse. Israel's experience since the Oslo agreements has shown that the responsibility for Jewish holy sites or the roads leading to them should remain in Israeli hands.

(Excerpt) Read more at jcpa.org ...