Roundup: UNESCO's Jerusalem resolution sparks mixed reactions from Israel, Palestinians

A draft resolution on a holy site in the Old City of East Jerusalem, which cleared a committee of UNESCO on Thursday, has stirred mixed reactions from Israel and the Palestinians on Friday.

Israeli authorities said on Friday it was suspending all professional ties with the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) following the vote by the UN cultural body, which played down Jewish connection to the site, known by Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, or "the noble sanctuary," and Jews as the Temple Mount.

"Any Israeli participation will be halted. There will be no meetings with UNESCO officials or participation in international conventions, or any other professional cooperation with the organization," Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement released by his office.

The resolution, sponsored by Arab countries including Qatar, Egypt and Lebanon, condemned Israel's "escalating aggression" against Muslim worshippers at the site and is expected to be submitted to UNESCO's executive board on Tuesday.

In a copy of the resolution seen by Xinhua, it refers to the site solely as Haram al-Sharif or al-Aqsa Mosque compound, one of the three monumental structures dominating the site, and calls Israel an "occupying power."

In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mocked the resolution on his Facebook account, described it as "delusional."

"To declare that Israel has no connection to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall is like saying that China has no connection to the Great Wall of China or that Egypt has no connection to the pyramids," he said.

The prime minister also invited the members voting for the resolution to visit the Arch of Titus, an ancient triumphal arch located in Rome, to see for themselves the treasures plundered some 2000 years ago from the Temple Mount.

In contrast to anger from the Jews, the Palestinians said they welcomed the resolution from the UN cultural body.

In an official press statement, Palestinian President Spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeinah said the vote shows what Israel is doing "contributes to creating a status of chaos and instability."

He also urged the U.S. to review "its wrong policies that encourage Israel to keep its occupation of the Palestinian territories."

On Friday, the Islamic Hamas movement described the UNESCO's decision as "a step in the right direction."

"The UNESCO's acknowledgement that al-Aqsa mosque is a holy site for Muslims only and that Jews have no ties to it is a step in the right direction," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said in an emailed statement.

The Palestinian Waqf and Religious Affairs Minister Yousef Ide'is said the UNESCO "will seek to protect al-Aqsa mosque in light of the Israeli schemes to change the geographic and demographic reality in the holy city."

The flashpoint site, which Israel occupied from Jordan in the 1967 Middle East War, has been under joint supervision of Israel and Jordan following the 1994 peace agreement.

The Palestinians seek to declare East Jerusalem, including the holy al-Aqsa mosque, as the capital of their state, while Israel insists that an undivided Jerusalem is its natural capital.

East Jerusalem has seen a vortex of strife and violence since October 2015, due to attempts by Israeli right-wing activists to allow Jews to pray at the holy site to change its status quo.

Figures show a year-long violence has claimed the lives of at least 230 Palestinians and 36 Israelis. Endit