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Politics

Ted Cruz, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Ramp Up UN Fight Over Jerusalem

October 25, 2016 - 7:30pm
Ted Cruz and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Ted Cruz and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., doubled down in their opposition to a United Nations effort downplaying  Jerusalem’s Jewish and Christian heritage. 

Earlier this month, Ros-Lehtinen, the chairwoman of the U.S. House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, joined Cruz in sending a letter to the Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), protesting a UNESCO proposal playing up Jerusalem’s Muslim history while playing down its importance in both the Jewish and Christian traditions.  Cruz and Ros-Lehtinen also sent letters on the matter to two Obama administration diplomats: Amb.  Samantha Powers, the American ambassador to the United Nations, and Amb. Crystal Nix-Hines, the permanent representative to UNESCO.

On Tuesday, Cruz and Ros-Lehtinen expanded their efforts, writing UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee on the matters, stressing their opposition to the  “The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls” resolution, insisting it “denies Jewish and Christian ties to Jerusalem and delegitimizes Israel.”

“I’m proud to once again join with Ted and our congressional colleagues, in a bipartisan manner, to urge opposition to UNESCO’s efforts at diminishing Jewish and Christian ties to Jerusalem,” Ros-Lehtinen said on Tuesday. “UNESCO’s last anti-Israel resolution was roundly criticized yet some of the organization’s members appear single-minded in their efforts to attack the Jewish State, the only country to respect religious freedom in a region beset by religious violence. The continued hypocrisy and repeated attempts by UNESCO members to distort the truth must be seen for what they are: part and parcel of the larger anti-Israel agenda that exists across the UN system, one designed to delegitimize and isolate the Jewish state. As with so many UN bodies, UNESCO has strayed far from the values and ideals upon which it was founded and it is up to responsible nations to stand up and defeat divisive and historically inaccurate resolutions like these, and finally provide the UN with the reform it so desperately needs.”

“UNESCO will consider another biased resolution that denies the historical connection of the Jewish people to its holy sites in Jerusalem this week,” Cruz said. “Members of the World Heritage Committee should reject this pernicious effort to delegitimize Israel, and vote against this resolution that attempts to rewrite thousands of years of Jerusalem's Jewish identity, which has been scientifically reaffirmed by the archaeological record.  More and more countries, such as Mexico, Brazil, and Italy, have voiced increasing objections to a similar resolution that was just adopted at the UNESCO Executive Board. It is long past time for more countries to do the same and put an end to this absurd charade to undermine our close ally Israel.”

The letter was signed by three other senators--Democrats Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Joe Manchin of West Virginia,. Four members of the U.S. House, including U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch of Florida, the ranking Democrat on the House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, also signed the letter.

More than 35 other members of Congress backed the letter Cruz and Ros-Lehtinen sent to the UNESCO Executive Board including members of the Florida delegation: Republican U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Carlos Curbelo, Ron DeSantis and Ted Yoho and Deutch and follow Democratic U.S. Reps. Lois Frankel, Alcee Hastings and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Comments

Next step is for UNESCO to declare that the city belongs to the Roman Empire and that its official name is still Aelia Capitolina and not Jerusalem. All politicians will be supper happy and the three religions will surely bless the very wise declaration. THERE WILL FINALLY BE PEACE AT LAST FORT HE LUNATICS!!!!

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