Palestinian Heritage Committee Condemns Placing Bnat Ya'qub Shrine Under Israeli Antiquities Authority

 

GHLands : Abu Zohri: Israeli Measure Targets the Administration of Palestinian Heritage and Violates International Law and the Second Oslo Accord

Ramallah – September 22, 2026 (WAFA): The Palestinian National Committee for Tangible and Intangible Heritage condemned the decision by the Israeli occupation authorities to place the Bnat Ya'qub Shrine, located in the Irtah suburb of Tulkarm, under the authority of the Israeli Antiquities Authority, following the storming of the site and the posting of notices indicating that it had been placed under its control.

In a statement issued today, Tuesday, the committee said the measure constitutes an attack on a Palestinian religious and heritage site and forms part of efforts to impose control over heritage administration in the occupied territories.

Ali Zaidan Abu Zohri, head of the committee and a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, affirmed that the Bnat Ya'qub Shrine holds Palestinian religious, historical, and cultural significance, noting that parts of the site date back to the Roman and Mamluk periods.

Abu Zohri explained that placing the shrine under the authority of the Israeli Antiquities Authority comes as part of attempts to reshape the system governing antiquities and heritage administration in the West Bank. He said the measure violates international humanitarian law and the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property, in addition to conflicting with provisions of the Second Oslo Accord concerning antiquities and Palestinian authority over their administration.

Call for UNESCO and the World Heritage Committee to Act

In this context, Abu Zohri called on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Heritage Committee to assume their responsibilities toward protecting the Bnat Ya'qub Shrine, along with other Palestinian heritage and religious sites.

He also called for documenting the unilateral measures targeting these sites and for ensuring respect for international conventions concerning the protection of cultural heritage in the occupied territories.

Abu Zohri stressed that Palestinian heritage, both tangible and intangible, represents a fundamental pillar of national identity and collective memory. He affirmed that the committee will continue its efforts, in cooperation with Palestinian and international bodies, to protect and document heritage sites.

He added that efforts will continue to secure the presence of these sites in international records and to confront any attempts aimed at taking control of them or altering their historical and cultural identity.

The committee affirmed that preserving and documenting Palestinian heritage and religious sites is part of its ongoing efforts to protect Palestinian tangible and intangible heritage and to confront measures aimed at imposing control over its administration or altering its identity.