Politics at UNESCO World Heritage: What Exactly Should Be Protected?
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee, meeting in Busan, South Korea, added five Crusader castle ruins in southern Lebanon and the ancient city of Sebastia in the West Bank to the World Heritage List, immediately placing them on the Red List of threatened sites due to the Israel-Hezbollah war and Israeli occupation. The article analyzes how UNESCO's decisions are increasingly politicized, with Lebanon and Palestine using the process to highlight destruction from Israeli military actions. Seven cultural sites are now directly linked to Israel's conflicts. The Palestinian Authority systematically uses World Heritage status to oppose Israeli occupation, while Iran and Gulf states have not sought additional protection for their threatened sites despite regional tensions. The article notes the committee's composition favors critics of Netanyahu's policies, and that the Red List signals urgent need for international protection.
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