Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered to start preparations to pull out from UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) along with the United States that announced the similar move on Thursday.

Axar.az reports that the development comes hours after the US State Department said in a statement that Washington would withdraw from the international organization at the end of 2018 because of "continuing anti-Israel bias at UNESCO."

Israel has been at odds with UNESCO in the recent month over the UN cultural body's position on Israel's construction activities in East Jerusalem and its actions in the Gaza Strip.