Lebanon's Delegation at UNESCO Foils U.S. Position on Gaza

The media office of the Ministry of Culture announced in a statement that "during the 42nd session of UNESCO in Paris today, Yemen, on behalf of the Arab group participating in the General Conference, proposed including an agenda item titled 'The Impact and Consequences of the Current Situation in the Gaza Strip on All Aspects of UNESCO's Competences.' Immediately, the U.S. delegation opposed the inclusion of this item, prompting the official Lebanese delegation to request the floor before the conference presidency and insist on the General Assembly including the item. They argued that its content 'morally and humanely binds the organization, especially since thousands of innocent victims are paying the price of hatred with their lives, amid a systematic erasure of heritage, history, and civilization, which represent the ethics the organization was founded upon since 1947.' As a result of Lebanese persistence represented by the stance of the Lebanese Ministry of Culture and the positions of Palestine and Yemen, the presidency of the session decided to include the item in its agenda contrary to the U.S. insistence on excluding it."