PRAGUE EJP)—The Czech parliament has called on the government to stop sending financial contributions to UNESCO as it rejected the latest Paris-based UN body resolution which it said ‘’ denies Israeli sovereignty over all of Jerusalem,’’ Czech news agency CTK reported.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) passed the controversial resolution three weeks ago.
Jan Bartosek, the parliament’s deputy chairman and a meùber of the Christian Democrat party, said the resolution "confirms a permanent, biased and hostile stance of UNESCO on one of its member states as well as an unacceptable politisation of this organisation."
The parliament approved the appeal to the government to stop funding UNESCO at the initiative of the opposition Civic Democrats (ODS).
"The only possible sanction against this organisation is that we stop supporting it financially," ODS MP Jana Cernochova said. The contributions should not be paid unless UNESCO gives up its hostile stance on Israel, she said.
Another MP from the opposition, Daniel Korte, said UNESCO deals with Jerusalem rather than with the destruction of heritage by the Islamic State organisation. He criticised UNESCO for not protesting against Arabs who damaged Jewish heritage sites.
The parliament said the Czech government should advocate a position respecting Jerusalem as the Israeli capital city and impede steps that distort historical facts and are motivated by a hatel anti-Israeli spirit.
The Czech Republic is among Israel’s best friends in the European Union.