UNESCO denies recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel

UNESCO has denied reports that it has recognised the occupied city of Jerusalem as the “capital of Israel” and announcing such formal recognition on its website. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation said in a statement: “We would like to stress once again, contrary to claims recently reported, that there has been no change in the position of UNESCO regarding the city of Jerusalem.”

The statement stressed the commitment of UNESCO to the relevant decisions of the United Nations which recognise that Jerusalem is part of the occupied Palestinian territories, the status of which should be discussed in the so-called “final status” negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

---

The Conference of Supervisors of Palestinian Affairs in the Arab countries, which first raised the recognition issue, has condemned the alleged position of the UN organisation, which it sees as “an explicit violation of the resolutions of international legitimacy”.