Israel has suspended ties with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), after a draft decision that Israel says ignores Judaism’s ties to the religion’s holiest site. The draft decision notes the importance of Jerusalem to all three monotheistic religions, Christianity, Judaism and Islam, but makes no mention of why the city is significant to Christians or Jews.

• A subsidiary body of UNESCO’s Executive Board passed the resolution in Paris. It refers to Jerusalem’s holiest site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif.
• The draft decision, which largely criticises Israel’s actions in Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, was proposed by a group of Arab countries and drew harsh rebukes from Israel and the United States.
• In a letter from Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett following the vote, Israel announced it will freeze all professional activities with UNESCO.
• The United States stopped funding UNESCO in 2011 over the organisation’s acceptance of a Palestinian bid for full membership. This week’s resolution, put forward by Arab countries including Egypt, Algeria and Qatar, was adopted by a 24-6 vote, with 26 abstentions.

ISRAEL

• Israel,officially known as the State of Israel is a country in the Middle East, on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea.
• It has land borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the northeast, Jordan on the east, the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza Strip to the east and west, respectively, and Egypt to the southwest.
• Capital: Jerusalem
• President: Reuven Rivlin
• Currency: Israeli new shekel
• Prime minister: Benjamin Netanyahu