Saudi Arabia has refused to issue entry visas to Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and Education Minister Yifat Kish, preventing their participation in the UNESCO conference.
The 45th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which aims to normalize the agreement between the two countries, is scheduled to be held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, from September 10 to 25, VisaGuide.World reports.
The Committee will also determine which sites are added to the World Heritage List and oversee their preservation. In 2017, Israel withdrew from UNESCO, citing the organisation’s perceived bias against Israel. However, the country still maintains its membership in the World Heritage Convention.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has been actively working on developing and promoting its heritage sites in recent years.
According to Israel’s media, the Israeli Foreign Ministry reassessed the situation with their American counterparts, who said that the time for the proposed visit of Ministers to Saudi Arabia could be more suitable.
Despite increased efforts by the United States and Israel to regularize the deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel, Riyadh has stuck firmly to its official position, insisting on establishing formal relations with Tel Aviv only when a Palestinian state is established.
The public visit of low-level Israeli officials to Saudi Arabia has marked a significant development in the United States’ efforts to secure a normalization agreement between the two countries. In March this year, Riyadh rejected Israel’s request to allow Cohen to attend the UNESCO conference.
The public visit of low-level Israeli officials to Saudi Arabia has been seen as a significant development in the United States’ efforts to secure a normalization agreement between these two countries.
Saudi Arabia recently appointed an envoy to the Palestinian territories, a move seen as a possible step toward standardisation relations with Israel.
Moreover, in 2020, three Arab states – the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco – normalized ties with Israel through a controversial agreement known as the Abraham Accords.
Saudi Arabia has emphasized that the establishment of diplomatic ties with Israel depends on implementing the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which advocates the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has reportedly set several conditions to approve Saudi-Israeli normalization. In addition, the Kingdom eased its entry requirements for Israeli passport holders last year, as a result of which many Israeli business people have traveled to Saudi Arabia during this period.