Following Its UNESCO Recognition, Jericho Is Anticipating A Surge In Tourists

Tell es-Sultan, a Palestinian ancient monument, was added to the world heritage list.      

The little hill on the outskirts of Jericho may go unnoticed by tourists, but it made headlines throughout the world last month. A prehistoric site in Jericho, in the occupied West Bank, has been designated as a World Heritage site by UNESCO, raising Palestinian expectations of a tourist boom.

Fireworks were let off in honour of the occasion, with locals well aware of the potential economic impact the event may have.

Abdulkareem Sider, mayor of Jericho, remarked, "For the first time, I felt that there was justice in the world."

His office at city hall is decorated with paintings representing Jericho's legacy, and he hopes this will have a "major good influence" on the amount of visitors who tour the city.

At the same time, even though archaeologists have found evidence of human habitation at Tell es-Sultan dating back at least 10,000 years, just a few dozen tourists are willing to withstand the noon heat to take a tour of the site.

Hisham's Palace in Jericho is an early Islamic building with large mosaics that Palestinian authorities anticipate will be the city's next UNESCO designation. Other biblical places dot the terrain, including a monastery perched atop the Mount of Temptation, where Christians claim Jesus fought Satan for 40 days.

However, despite these cultural attractions, tourism remains low. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, there were 32,535 hotel visitors in the Jericho region in the first six months of this year.

Those numbers pale in comparison to the 221,377 who call the West Bank city of Bethlehem "home" according to Christian tradition.

A permanent town at Tell es-Sultan evolved between the 9th and 8th millennia BC, but despite the hubbub around the UNESCO announcement, there are just a few of plaques at the site that highlight its historical importance.

In spite of these problems, Mohammed Mansour, the man in charge of managing Jericho's ancient monuments, claims that things would soon improve owing to money provided by Italy. He said that a new museum will be built, complete with a promenade for tourists and shelters to safeguard the site.

Mansour beamed as he described the 29 civilizations uncovered at Tell es-Sultan, where people from thousands of years ago climbed a tower with stairways they had constructed and established a common way of life and a set of shared beliefs.

Although national and international financing will help get the word out about the city, there is currently no means for Palestinians to grant tourist permits.

Tell es-Sultan provides a view of neighbouring Jordan, however the adjacent crossing is under Israeli control due to Israel's occupation of the West Bank since the 1967 War.

In addition to tourists, the city is popular among Israeli Arabs, the offspring of Palestinians who remained in the country after Israel was founded in 1948.

Nevertheless, Mansour and the mayor of Jericho had a common complaint: many tourists visit Jericho as part of a larger tour organized by operators with Israeli licenses, and these tourists frequently mistake the Palestinian areas for Israel.

The mayor's goals include enticing visitors to explore more of the Jordan Valley and making it easier for them to see the historic sights even after dark. He also said that visitors may experience the local culture by visiting the Dead Sea and the Jordan River.

In his capacity as mayor, he defended Jericho's openness to tourists on the grounds that, being the oldest city in the world, it is everyone's right to see it.

 

Source: thenationalnews.com