Mexico Triggers Re-Vote on Contentious UNESCO Quds Resolution

Local Editor

A controversial resolution passed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO] last week denying Jewish connections to Quds holy sites is set to be revisited after Mexico announced it was seeking to change its vote.

Mexico was one of 24 UNESCO member states that voted in favor of the contentious resolution put forth by the Palestinians, together with Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and Sudan, condemning the "Israeli" entity on several issues related to al-Quds [Jerusalem] and its holy sites.

While the draft acknowledges that al-Quds is holy to Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, it said the "Temple Mount" holy site is sacred only to Muslims and fails to mention its significance to Jews.

The resolution refers to the "Temple Mount" by only its Muslim names [al-Aqsa Mosque and Haram al-Sharif] and fails to mention its Hebrew or English names ["Har HaBayit" or "Temple Mount"].

But in a surprise move, Mexico announced it had changed its position and was triggering a rarely used clause to force a new general committee debate and re-vote on the resolution, to be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, just one day before UNESCO's executive board was set to validate all resolutions passed this year in a blanket vote.

While the new vote is expected to pass with a large majority, it could provide other countries the opportunity to revisit their positions.

The Secretariat of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday that Mexico's changed position reiterated "the recognition that the Government of Mexico gives the undeniable link of the Jewish people to the cultural heritage of East Jerusalem."

The statement continued that Mexico's abstention "reflects the deep appreciation [the government] has for the Jewish community and in particular for their significant contributions to the welfare and economic, social, and cultural development of Mexico."

Mexico's original vote reportedly came as a result of conflicting directives between President Ennrique Pena Nieto and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Nieto had apparently promised "Israeli" officials and his country's Jewish community that Mexico would not support the resolution. But at the time of the vote, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs directed UNESCO Ambassador Andreas Roemer to vote in favor.

Roemer‎, a Mexican Jew, was reportedly opposed to Mexico's support for the resolution and tried unsuccessfully to change his country's decision, a senior "Israeli" official said, according to Haaretz. He walked out of the vote in an apparent protest of the decision, leaving a deputy representative to deliver the vote in his place.

Roemer‎ was removed from his position overnight Tuesday in order to quell protests by Mexico's infuriated Jewish community, with Mexico's Foreign Affairs Ministry announcing it would open an internal probe "to ascertain and determine the responsibilities of the officials involved in this issue."

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team