The UNESCO General Conference approved here tonight by 64 to 27 an Arab-Communist bloc-inspired resolution calling on the UNESCO Director General to stop cooperation with Israel and halt all aid in the fields of culture, science and education. The resolution, which had earlier been approved in commission, a aid that such aid would be stopped until Israel abides by a UNESCO resolution calling for a halt to archaeological diggings in Jerusalem.
Among the countries who voted against the resolution were all the nine European Economic Community member countries including France. Italy and Ireland. Immediately after the vote, the Israeli delegate announced that he would make a statement later tonight.
Before the vote, a number of Jewish organizations. including the B’nai B’rith. the World Jewish Congress and the Consultative Council of Jewish Organizations appealed to the assembly to bear in mind Israel’s historical link with the holy city and its enormous contributions to the city’s religious and cultural development. The former Director General of UNESCO, Rene Maheu, today condemned the organization’s anti-Israel decisions “as inappropriate” and called for a continued UNESCO presence in Israel and the occupied territories.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
