In his introduction to Oded Avisar's "The Book of Hebron," published in 1970, former Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion presented a comprehensive overview of the biblical ties of the "city of the patriarchs and the cradle of the kings" to the modern-day city of Hebron. "Hebrew history begins in Hebron. ... However, the importance of Hebron is not merely in its role in the lives of the patriarchs and matriarchs of our nation. ... [In Hebron] arose the greatest royal dynasty that Israel ever had. ... Don't forget, the beginnings of Israel's greatest king were in Hebron, the city to which came the first Hebrew about 800 years before King David, and we will make a great and awful mistake if we fail to settle Hebron, neighbor and predecessor to Jerusalem, with a large Jewish settlement, constantly growing and expanding, very soon. This will also be a blessing to the Arab neighbors. Hebron is worthy to be Jerusalem's sister." Three years earlier, Ben-Gurion visited Kfar Etzion in a show of solidarity, two months after the settlement was re-established. He pointed out the bare Mount Hebron, and said: "Hebron should be settled by Jews, a lot of Jews. It was a Jewish city. We need to establish a large Jewish community there." Ben-Gurion was a secular Jew. He was the figure most identified with a political willingness to divide the country. After the 1967 Six-Day War, he urged a withdrawal from most of the territory captured in the war. His willingness to withdraw could have been applied to Hebron, too, but above any pragmatic considerations, he knew very well what meaning Hebron held for the Jewish people as a national symbol. He knew what the Cave of the Patriarchs meant as a national symbol. He knew and understood that the Cave of the Patriarchs -- like the Western Wall, like Rachel's Tomb -- was a symbol of many generations' longing for the land of Israel. The people who submitted a resolution characterizing the Cave of the Patriarchs as a Palestinian heritage site for a vote in UNESCO also know the meaning of the site as a Jewish national symbol. They know that the Cave of the Patriarchs is one of the Jewish people's most important symbols, tying the people to the land of Israel. They realize that this site lies at the heart of the Jewish people's national identity. They weren't interested in the cave itself, or in the nonsense talk about it being a Palestinian site. Their only objective was to declare that the Jewish people have no historic right to the land of Israel -- that there is no Jewish people and therefore they cannot have any right to a national state in Israel. This is the only purpose of the resolution -- to question the State of Israel's right to exist. Is there any point in Israel remaining a member of UNESCO or even the U.N.? In my opinion, yes. Israel should not punish itself with international isolation, thereby rewarding its enemies. The proper way to confront the resolution is to make it laughable. Israel must demonstrate its contempt for this absurd resolution by bringing another resolution for a vote in UNESCO claiming that the earth is flat and the sun revolves around it.
