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November 5, 2010 at 4:01 PM

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Israel won't welcome U.N. heritage site preservation group

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TARA TODRAS-WHITEHILL / AP

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man prays as he is reflected in a prayer written in Hebrew in the Tomb of the Patriarchs, traditionally believed to be the burial site of the biblical Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and Matriarchs Sara, Leah and Rebecca, in the West Bank city of Hebron, Friday, Oct. 29. The Israeli government is upset over a recent UNESCO decision that refers to the site as a mosque - and rejects the Jewish connection to the Tomb of the Patriarchs, known to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.

Muslim-Israeli relations won’t benefit from UNESCO’s involvement

Editor, The Times:

That UNESCO’s decision to classify Jewish holy sites that date back centuries before Islam made its appearance on the world’s stage as “Palestinian mosques” is ludicrous [“Israel to snub UNESCO in shrine dispute,” seattletimes.com, Nov. 4].

Furthermore, this action supports the view that Arab and Muslim states do not seek peace with Israel, but rather to erase its existence, be it through physical annihilation, as Iran aspires, or through delegitimization of the state of Israel and the history of the Jewish people.

It also devalues UNESCO, and whatever good it does in the world is tainted by such absurd, politically tainted actions.

— Gabriel Scherzer, Bellevue

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