The Israeli Ambassador to the UN, Carmel Shama-Cohen gave a replica of the Titus Arch in Rome to Irina Bukova, Director-General of UNESCO Tuesday morning in a ceremony in Paris.
This is an exact replica of the inner wall of Titus’ Arch. The idea for this unique gift came from Prime Minister Netanyahu and it’s a response to last year’s UNESCO decision which denied any Jewish ties to the Western Wall and the Temple Mount. In the portion of the Titus Arch recreated for the replica a scene from a victory parade is depicted with the victorious Roman soldiers parading with the menorah and other holy vessels from the Temple.
This historical vignette physically proves the existence of the 2nd Temple on the Temple Mount and the fact that Jews never willfully left the holy land rather it was destroyed by foreign powers. This is a truth commonly denied by the Arab countries and last year the Arabs got UNESCO support in denying this truth. The replica will be displayed in the UN Organization for Education, Science and Culture.
The gift ceremony was attended by Michael Worbs, UNESCO Executive Board Chairman, and ambassadors of France, Italy, Spain and other countries. Carmel Shama-Cohen explains that the Titus arch wasn’t built by Jews nor did they request it to be built. Rather it was Rome’s desire for self-glorification 2,000 years ago that made them build it. It’s both funny and ironic that this display of defeat and Jewish submission that Jews haven’t walked under for millennia became a display and proof of the Jewish nation’s ties to Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.
Shama-Cohen also reiterated that the UNESCO decisions they made last year endanger lives by supporting the terrorist’s narrative and he thanked the Director-General for opposing the decisions despite being attacked by the Arab Lobby. These words were spoken just hours after the terrible Har Adar murder of 3 Israelis.
The Director-General said that the Titus Arch depicts a tragic scene in Jewish history and proves beyond a shadow of doubt the Jewish ties to Jerusalem.