PARIS (AP) -- UNESCO's executive board on Friday chose former French Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay to be the U.N. cultural agency's next leader over a Qatari candidate in an unusually heated race overshadowed by Mideast tensions. The U.S. announcement this week that it's quitting UNESCO rocked the multi-day election and heightened concerns about the agency's funding and future direction. Azoulay succeeds outgoing Director-General Irina Bokova of Bulgaria, whose eight-year term was marred by financial woes and criticism over Palestine's inclusion as a member. On Thursday, the U.S. and Israel said they plan to pull out of the Paris-based organization over its...
↧