Itongadol.- Manuel Valls made the statement in a letter penned to Shmuel Rabinovitch, the Rabbi of the Western Wall and the Holy Sites of Israel.
France will never deny the "true, existing right" of Jewish historical ties to Jerusalem, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has pledged.
Valls made the statement in a letter penned Thursday to Shmuel Rabinovitch, the Rabbi of the Western Wall and the Holy Sites of Israel.
The French diplomat\’s remarks came in light of Rabinovitch\’s protest over Paris\’s backing of a UNESCO resolution adopted in April that ignored Jewish ties to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall.
"Unfortunate and clumsy formulations befell the language of UNESCO\’s decision to the point of insult," read the letter, which Rabinovitch\’s office released Monday. "I believe that this should have been avoided and that the vote should not have happened."
Valls asserted that France\’s position has not changed on Jerusalem, which views the capital as a symbol of "the unification of the three major monotheistic religions."
The 21-members of the World Heritage Committee had been scheduled to vote on the matter last week as it wrapped up its 40th session in Istanbul, which had been scheduled to run from July 10 to July 20.
However, in light of the failed Turkish coup, the vote was delayed until October.
The resolution had been initially submitted by Jordan and Palestine as part of the bureaucratic process by which the World Heritage Committee reaffirmed the placement of Jerusalem and its Old City ramparts on its World Heritage in Danger list.
As part of that confirmation process Palestine and Jordan introduced a text attacking Israeli actions, including its archeological digs within Jerusalem’s Old City. Although the Temple Mount is Judaism’s holiest site, it referred to it solely by its Muslim name of Al-Haram ash-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary).
In April, UNESCO\’s 58-member Executive Board approved resolution 19 with 33 votes in favor, six against and 17 abstentions. Ghana and Turkmenistan were absent all together.
Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States opposed the resolution outright, while France, Spain, Sweden, Russia and Slovenia were among those who supported it.
As a member state of UNESCO since 2011 Palestine may submit resolutions to UNESCO bodies such as the World Heritage Committee.