Unesco has removed a Belgian carnival that mocks Jews from its heritage list after persistent charges of racism, The Independent reports.

The UN’s intergovernmental committee for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage said it was withdrawing the carnival, which takes place each year in the Belgian city of Aalst, “over recurring repetition of racist and antisemitic representations” at the event.

The carnival was initially added to Unesco’s list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2010, but the presence of a parade float featuring Orthodox Jews with hooked noses and sitting on gold bags caused outrage in the country where there is a 40,000-strong Jewish community.

Aalst’s mayor Christoph D’Haese, anticipating Unesco’s decision at a meeting on Sunday, renounced the city’s place on the list before it could be stripped of the designation and defended the carnival.