In a letter to King Abdullah of Jordan, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre Director for International Relations, Dr. Shimon Samuels, denounced, “demands by Fatah-affiliated officials forthe King to coordinate with the Palestinian President, to oblige Israel to implement a UNESCO resolution on Jerusalem.”
“Your Majesty, we recall your hospitality to our Centre’s delegation in Amman, just as granted to us by your late father, King Hussein (R.I.P.), to celebrate the signing of peacebetween the Hashemite Kingdom and the State of Israel,” noted Samuels, continuing, “In your capacity as ‘Custodian of Jerusalem’s Muslim and Christian holy sites’, we value yourrecognition of the city’s sanctity to all three monotheistic religions, especially Judaism. This is also the position of Israel.”
The Centre added: “You are, of course, aware that one of your petitioners, Hassan Issa, Secretary General of a Muslim-Christian Committee, is well-known for his antisemiticcampaigns to ‘de-Judaize’ the Holy City, to the point of denying Jewish affinity to the Western Wall... ."
“Issa claims that the latest UNESCO resolution on Jerusalem, two weeks ago in Paris, ‘reaffirmed that ‘legislative and administrative measures and actions taken by Israel, theoccupying power, which have altered or purport to alter the character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem... are null and void and must be rescinded forthwith'.”
Samuels argued: “Your Majesty - following the goodwill depoliticization lead of UNESCO Director-General, Audrey Azoulay - Jordan, Israel and the Palestinians agreed to a consensusin the cause of the said Executive Board resolution. Indeed, I was present in the Chamber and witnessed that the resolution was not submitted to a vote and was ensconced in anon-binding, non-referential Annex.”
The Palestinian initiative is no more than a mischievous breach of faith to undermine the Director-General and trap Your Majesty in a stratagem to tarnish the good faith ofJordan... Our Centre urges Your Majesty to resist this provocation and consign their demand to oblivion,” concluded Samuels.
For further information, contact Shimon Samuels on +33 609 770 158, join the Center on Facebook, www.facebook.com/simonwiesenthalcenter, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent direct to your Twitter feed.
The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families inthe United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament(Parlatino).
oblige Israel to implement a UNESCO resolution on Jerusalem.”