BUSAN — A United Nations committee voted on Friday, July 24, 2026, to inscribe a major archaeological site in the West Bank and a set of castles in southern Lebanon as World Heritage sites. The UNESCO committee decided to place Sebastia and five castles in Lebanon’s Mount Amel area on both the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger.

The decision occurred at a U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization meeting in Busan, South Korea. The committee reviewed the nominations on an emergency basis, citing ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. This vote added two new sites to the List of World Heritage in Danger, raising the global total to 56 sites, with 147 inscribed sites under review for conservation status during the Busan session.

Sebastia is a hilltop town located about 10 kilometers (6 miles) northwest of Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Scholars identify Sebastia as ancient Samaria, capital of the biblical Kingdom of Israel. The archaeological remains in Sebastia span the Iron Age, Roman, Byzantine and Islamic periods. According to a UNESCO website, Christian and Islamic tradition holds that John the Baptist was buried in Sebastia.

Sebastia’s nomination was first submitted by the Palestinian delegation to UNESCO in 2012. The nomination argued that World Heritage status was needed to help preserve the site, noting it remains largely undeveloped under Israeli control and requires additional conservation despite attracting tourists. Israel does not recognize a Palestinian state. Israel is moving to expropriate large swaths of land around the Sebastia site.

Adel Naim Daoud Atieh, a member of the Palestinian delegation to UNESCO, said the World Heritage designation rewards the perseverance of Sebastia’s residents, “who have protected this extraordinary site through generations, despite occupation, restrictions, and repeated attempts to separate them from their own heritage.”

Israel urged the committee to reject the bids for the West Bank site and Lebanese castles. Israel’s Foreign Ministry urged the committee to reject the efforts to designate Sebastia and the Lebanese castles, calling the nominations a “weaponization of cultural heritage.” In a statement issued on Tuesday, Israel’s Foreign Ministry accused the Palestinian delegation of waging a “hostile, one-sided campaign” at UNESCO by falsely portraying Sebastia as an area facing an emergency. Israel’s Foreign Ministry called the effort a political attempt to erase the site’s profound, well-documented Jewish and Christian history.

A member of the Israeli delegation, attending the Busan meetings as observers, said it was a “shame politicization has ruined UNESCO and led to mockery of history.” Israel withdrew from UNESCO in 2019, accusing the organization of being biased against it and of downplaying its historical ties to the Holy Land.

The five castles in the Mount Amel region are recognized for their layered architectural heritage, combining Crusader, Ayyubid, Mamluk and local influences. According to a UNESCO description, the castles reflect the evolution of fortified architecture over nearly nine centuries. Beaufort Castle was part of the nomination covering five castles in the Mount Amel area. Israel’s Foreign Ministry objected to efforts to list Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon as a World Heritage site.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry stated that Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group, has turned Beaufort Castle into a military stronghold by building tunnels beneath the site and launching rockets from the area. Israel’s Foreign Ministry accused UNESCO of ignoring developments regarding Hezbollah’s use of Beaufort Castle. UNESCO declined to comment on the Israeli claims about Hezbollah. The Lebanese embassy in South Korea declined to comment on the Israeli claims about Hezbollah.

At Friday’s meeting, a Lebanese delegate said the castles have been used “only for cultural and tourism purposes” since Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000. A Lebanese delegate accused Israeli media of circulating images of tourist facilities as military tunnels.