Gaza, Alray - Israel decided Monday to cancel the due visit of a team from the UN's Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to preservation work in Jerusalem’s Old City.

"The decision was made as the Palestinian Authority claimed that the aim of the visit is "political" to form international inquiry commission.", an Israeli source said.

The delegation arrived Sunday to inspect preservation work in Jerusalem’s Old City, as part of a deal whereby Israel would let the delegation tour the Old City, and the Palestinians would postpone five anti-Israel resolutions pending before the body.

The Jordanian royal palace issued a statement in April, saying “Jordan and Palestine, supported by Arab states, succeeded in pressuring Israel, for the first time since 2004, to accept and facilitate a UNESCO experts’ mission to investigate and assess the status of heritage and conservation of the Old City of Jerusalem and its walls.”

UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, accepted “Palestine” as a member in 2011, a move that angered Jerusalem and Washington and led the US to cut off its annual contribution to the organization.

UNESCO added the Old City to its list of World Heritage Sites in 1981, and a year later placed it on its list of “endangered” World Heritage Sites. The last monitoring mission took place in 2004, and UNESCO has been requesting a new one for the last three years.

According to a UNESCO statement, the mission’s goals are to “examine the state of conservation of the Old City of Jerusalem and its walls, a World Heritage site.” The mission is made up of experts from UNESCO’s World Heritage Center, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, and the International Center for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. It is to present its report and recommendations before the beginning of the World Heritage Committee’s annual meeting on June 1.