Decision 31 COM 7A.18

Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls (site proposed by Jordan) (C 148 rev)

 The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Documents WHC-07/31.COM/7A.Add.2, WHC-07/31.COM/7A.Add.3, WHC-07/31.COM/INF.7A.1, WHC-07/31.COM/INF.7A.2 and WHC-07/31.COM/INF.7A.3,
2. Recalling Decision 30 COM 7A.34, adopted at its 30th session (Vilnius, 2006),
3. Further recalling 176 EX/Special Plenary Meeting/Decision, adopted at the 176th session of the UNESCO Executive Board (April 2007),
4. Also recalling the relevant provisions on the protection of cultural heritage including, as appropriate, the four Geneva Conventions (1949), the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954, the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972, the inscription of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls at the request of Jordan on the World Heritage List (1981) and on the List of World Heritage in Danger (1982), and the recommendations, resolutions and decisions of UNESCO,
5. Affirming that nothing in the present decision, which aims at the safeguarding of the cultural heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls, shall in any way affect the relevant United Nations resolutions and decisions, in particular the relevant Security Council resolutions on the legal status of Jerusalem,
6. Welcomes the Action Plan for the Safeguarding of the Cultural Heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem developed in the context of the Director-General's comprehensive initiative for the safeguarding of the cultural heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls and strongly supports its implementation in coordination with the concerned parties;
7.  Also welcomes the information provided by the Israel National Commission for UNESCO in its letter dated 8 June 2007, indicating that the archaeological excavations at the Mughrabi ascent have stopped and urges the Israeli authorities to limit on-going activities at the Mughrabi ascent to consolidation and stabilization works;
8. Asks the World Heritage Centre to facilitate the professional encounter at the technical level between Israeli, Jordanian and Waqf experts to discuss the detailed proposals for the proposed final design of the Mughrabi ascent, prior to any final decision;
9. Requests the Israeli authorities, in addition to the above encounter, to provide the World Heritage Centre, as soon as possible, with the proposed final design of the Mughrabi ascent, whose principle aim should be to maintain the authenticity and integrity of the site;
10. Further asks the World Heritage Centre to make technical expertise and assistance available for the future conservation works at the Mughrabi ascent, as needed;
11. Calls on the international donor community to support, through extra-budgetary funding, activities aimed at the safeguarding of the cultural heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls, in particular in the context of the Action Plan;
12. Further requests the World Heritage Centre to report on the state of conservation and on the progress in the implementation of the Action Plan for the Safeguarding of the Cultural Heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem at its 32nd session in 2008;
13. Decides to recommend the application of the reinforced monitoring mechanism subject to the procedures in Document WHC-07/31.COM/5.2 and Decision 31 COM 5.2 in monitoring the state of conservation of the Mughrabi ascent and requests a report every two months from the World Heritage Centre until its 32nd session in 2008;
14. Decides to retain the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls on the List of World Heritage in Danger