PA TV calls Jewish archaeological site which was the capital of the ancient northern kingdom of Israel a "Palestinian antiquities site only"
Official PA TV program Reporters in the Field, on Sebastia near Nablus
Official PA TV reporter: “Mr. Muhammad, let us speak about this area where the occupation claims there are Jewish antiquities, but this is a pretext that the occupation is using not only in Sebastia but also in many [other] Palestinian villages (sic., see note below on Jewish archaeological site in Sebastia, which was the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel and named Samaria at the time). Tell us about the history of this area as a Palestinian antiquities site only.”
Sebastia Mayor Muhammad Azem: “Sebastia has been here since more than 3000 BCE. In other words, it is more than 5,000 years old (sic., Sebastia’s known history goes back to approximately the 9th century BCE). Sebastia’s age and its cultural heritage in which all the civilizations participated- the most important of them being the Palestinian Canaanite culture in Sebastia (sic., the Canaanites were not Palestinian and the Palestinians have no history prior to the modern period), and also the Roman, Byzantine, Greek, Ottoman, and Islamic cultures. Until this day there is no evidence for the history of the occupation, the occupation state, or the Jews in Sebastia (sic., evidence of Jewish history in Sebastia includes the Samaria Ostraca, Hebrew pottery shards from the palace of biblical King Ahab).”
Sebastia was the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel in the 9th and 8th centuries BCE and today is under the jurisdiction of the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority. The PA frequently claims that Israel is trying to take over the archeological site of Sebastia – which is located in Area C, under full Israeli security and administrative control.