Israel slams UNESCO vote that calls it 'occupying power'
WARSAW - Israel has protested a UNESCO vote that called it an "occupying power" in Jerusalem's Old City, which includes sites sacred to the Jews, Christians and Muslims.
Participants in a UNESCO World Heritage Committee's session in Krakow, Poland, called on Israeli authorities to stop excavations and other works in the Old City, saying they are illegal.
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon condemned the vote's wording as "disgraceful."
"No faux 'heritage committee' can sever the bonds between our people and Jerusalem," Danon said in a statement made available to The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The wording was proposed by three Arab nations, described Israel as the "occupying Power" in Jerusalem. Tuesday's vote was the latest in a string of spats between Israel and the UN cultural agency.
