The
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO)
World Heritage Sites
are places of importance to
cultural
or
natural heritage
as described in the UNESCO
World Heritage Convention
, established in 1972.
[1]
Cultural heritage consists of monuments (such as architectural works, monumental sculptures, or inscriptions), groups of buildings, and sites (including archaeological sites). Natural heritage is defined as physical and biological formations, geological and physiographical formations (including habitats of threatened flora and fauna), and sites which are important from the point of view of scientific research, conservation or natural aesthetic.
[2]
The
State of Israel
ratified the convention on 6 October 1999, making its cultural and natural sites eligible for inclusion on the list. The country has nine sites, all of which are cultural. The earliest inclusions were Masda and the Old City of Acre in 2001; the latest inclusion was the network of caves at
Beit Guvrin-Maresha National Park
in 2014. In addition, the
Israeli cabinet
has put 18 sites on its tentative list, meaning they intend to nominate them as World Heritage Sites sometime in the future. 14 of them were put in the year 2000. Unlike the official list, the tentative list contains several sites of natural and mixed heritage.
[3]
Due to its
conflict with the State of Palestine
, Israel has a strained relationship with UNESCO, described by Palestinian journalist Ramzy Baroud as "an existential battle".
[4]
UNESCO recognizes Palestine's ownership of
East Jerusalem
in 2011, despite assigning no countries to the
Old City of Jerusalem
and its Walls site.
[5]
[6]
On that same year,
Palestine ratified the convention
, a decision opposed by Israel who left UNESCO in 2019 claiming that the organization fails to recognize its cultural connection with Jerusalem, though it still remains in the convention. The inclusion of
Tell es-Sultan
in ancient
Jericho
as a Palestinian site was criticized by
Israel's Foreign Ministry
as indicating "Palestinians' cynical use of UNESCO and
politicization
of [it]" and wishes to revert the "distorted decisions".
[7]
Israeli heritage organization Emek Shaveh noting that the part of Jericho claimed by Israel is not the one listed.
[8]
World Heritage Sites
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UNESCO lists sites under
ten criteria
; each entry must meet at least one of the criteria. Criteria i through vi are cultural, and vii through x are natural.
[9]
The table is sortable by column by clicking on the
at the top of the appropriate column; alphanumerically for the site, area, and year columns; by state party for the location column; and by criteria type for the criteria column. Transborder sites sort at the bottom.
- Site
; named after the
World Heritage Committee
's official designation
[10]
- Location
; at city, regional, or provincial level and geocoordinates
- Criteria
; as defined by the World Heritage Committee
[11]
- Area
; in
hectares
and
acres
. If available, the size of the buffer zone has been noted as well. A value of zero implies that no data has been published by
UNESCO
- Year
; during which the site was inscribed to the
World Heritage List
- Description
; brief information about the site, including reasons for qualifying as an endangered site, if applicable
World Heritage Sites located in Israel
[
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List of properties in the tentative list
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]
In addition to sites inscribed on the
World Heritage List
, member states can maintain a list of tentative sites that they may consider for nomination. Nominations for the World Heritage List are only accepted if the site was previously listed on the tentative list.
[21]
As of 2015
[update]
,
Israel
recorded 18 sites on its tentative list. The sites, along with the year they were included on the tentative list are:
[22]
See also
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References
[
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]
- ^
"The World Heritage Convention"
.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre
.
Archived
from the original on 27 August 2016
. Retrieved
21 September
2010
.
- ^
"Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage"
.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre
.
Archived
from the original on 1 February 2021
. Retrieved
3 February
2021
.
- ^
Centre, UNESCO World Heritage.
"Israel - UNESCO World Heritage Convention"
.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre
. Retrieved
2023-10-19
.
- ^
Baroud, Ramzy (25 September 2023).
"Ghosts of the past: For Israel, war on UNESCO is an existential battle"
.
Middle East Monitor
. Retrieved
19 October
2023
.
- ^
"Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls"
, UNESCO World Heritage List website, accessed 13 November 2017.
- ^
UNESCO press release
, 15 July 2011, accessed 13 November 2017.
- ^
AP and ToI Staff.
"UNESCO votes to list ruins near ancient Jericho as a World Heritage Site in Palestine"
.
www.timesofisrael.com
. Retrieved
2023-10-19
.
- ^
"Unesco's addition of West Bank archaeological site to World Heritage list fans Israel-Palestine tensions"
.
The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
. 2023-09-19
. Retrieved
2023-10-19
.
- ^
"UNESCO World Heritage Centre The Criteria for Selection"
.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre
.
Archived
from the original on 12 June 2016
. Retrieved
17 August
2018
.
- ^
"World Heritage List"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
28 May
2010
.
- ^
"The Criteria for Selection"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
10 September
2011
.
- ^
"Baha'i Holy Places in Haifa and the Western Galilee"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"Biblical Tels?Megiddo, Hazor, Beer Sheba"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"Incense Route ? Desert Cities in the Negev"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"Masada"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"Old City of Acre"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"White City of Tel-Aviv ? the Modern Movement"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
17 Aug
2011
.
- ^
"Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: The Nahal Me'arot / Wadi el-Mughara Caves"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
16 Jul
2012
.
- ^
"Caves of Maresha and Bet-Guvrin in the Judean Lowlands as a Microcosm of the Land of the Caves"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
3 Aug
2015
.
- ^
"Necropolis of Bet She'arim: A Landmark of Jewish Renewal"
.
UNESCO
. Retrieved
3 Aug
2015
.
- ^
"Tentative Lists"
. UNESCO
. Retrieved
July 12,
2014
.
- ^
UNESCO Official page for Tentative list
External links
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