UNESCO adds Sebastia site to World Heritage List despite Israeli objections

AI Summary

UNESCO inscribed the Sebastia archaeological site in the West Bank and a series of Lebanese castles to the World Heritage List despite Israeli opposition. Israel condemned the designations, accusing the committee of weaponizing cultural heritage for political purposes.

A United Nations committee on Friday inscribed a major archaeological site in the West Bank and a group of castles in southern Lebanon on the World Heritage List, despite objections from Israel, which had urged the committee to reject the bids. The decision at a U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization meeting in South Korea came days after Israel’s Foreign Ministry urged the committee to reject efforts to designate the small West Bank town of Sebastia and the Lebanese castles, calling the nominations a “weaponization of cultural heritage.”