While cynical resolutions are passed without credence at UNESCO and other United Nations NGOs with impunity, it would be disastrous for Israel to intrust “neutral” international bodies to oversee archeology discoveries in Jerusalem, for surely first the Jewish connection would disappear, followed by Christianity’s.
In Israel, archeology is far more than just science.
Indeed, perhaps more than any other country, the stakes of antiquities unearthed here could not be higher in terms of geopolitical implications used by warring factions to determine “facts on the ground” in the most contested region in the world.
Magdala stone with Menorah that was found in the Archaeological site inside the Migdal Synagogue area – Photo- Wikimedia Commons/Hanay
The battle between right- and left-wing ideologues is evident at archeological sites in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, where discoveries are routinely exhibited to the world as evidence of Israeli sovereignty in the Jewish homeland or as an occupier. Continue Reading »