Report: Israel Withdraws Opposition to U.S. Return to UNESCO

Israel has informed the Biden administration that it no longer opposes the United States resuming its involvement with the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization, senior U.S. and Israeli officials told the Walla news website.

The U.S. and Israel pulled out of UNESCO in 2019 citing growing concerns that the organization fosters anti-Israel bias. The Paris-based organization has been denounced by its critics as a crucible for anti-Israel bias following a series of puzzling decisions questioning Israeli presence in Jerusalem, naming ancient Jewish sites as Palestinian heritage sites, and granting full membership to the Palestinian Authority in 2011.

While the withdrawal was mainly procedural, it dealt UNESCO – co-founded by the U.S. after World War II to foster peace – a serious financial blow. The U.S. provided 20% of the agency’s funding, but then-President Barack Obama suspended payments in 2011, when the Palestinian Authority became a full member, in line with U.S. law.

In recent months, however, the Biden administration has been pressuring Israel to resume its participation in UNESCO, saying that it would allow Washington to promote other U.S. interests.

The new Israeli position paves the way for a vote in Congress on the allocation of more than $500 million in U.S. debt to the organization, as well as to the country’s return as a full UNESCO member, the report noted.

“It is very important to the Biden administration and it is not the same UNESCO. We received assurances that Israel will not be treated as it used to be treated,” a senior Israeli official said.