Israel criticizes UN vote to list ruins near ancient Jericho as World Heritage Site in Palestine

JERICHO, West Bank (AP) — A U.N. committee has voted to list prehistoric ruins near the ancient West Bank city of Jericho as a World Heritage Site in Palestine. The decision Sunday angered Israel, which controls the territory and does not recognize a Palestinian state. Jericho is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities on earth, and is in a part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank that is administered by the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority. The listing refers to the Tell es-Sultan archaeological site nearby, which contains prehistoric ruins dating back to the ninth millennium B.C. and is outside the ancient city itself. The decision was made by the U.N. World Heritage Committee meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.