Arab Radicals Encourage Violence in Jerusalem
Today, Israeli riot police confronted militant Arabs holed up in the Mosque on top of the Temple Mount. The Muslims claim they have taken to the streets and are committing violence because there is a rumor that Jews are going to come to the Temple Mount to pray.
Reflect on the reason for this violence: To stop Jews from praying on the Holiest site in the Jewish World.
This eruption is a good time to remind our readers of some pertinent facts:
All the talk about dividing Jerusalem between East and West is deceiving. What the Muslims want is the Temple Mount. Currently, even though Israel has jurisdiction over all of Jerusalem the Muslim religious authorities control Muslim sites and the Temple Mount. Under this arrangement Jews have very limited access to the Temple Mount. While the Muslims have used their authority to destroy invaluable archaeological materials that help document the rich Jewish and Christian history on the Temple Mount
Many Muslims, including Abbas the President of the Palestinian Authority, believe that Jews never had a presence on the Temple Mount. They refuse to acknowledge the Jewish Temples on the Temple Mount and to help prove their absurd contention they are trying to destroy any evidence that Jews existed on the Temple Mount and in Jerusalem.
When the supposedly moderate Mr. Abbas insists that the Arabs control Jerusalem he means control the Temple Mount. He understands that control of the Temple Mount will be a great victory over his Jewish and Christian enemies. He will then allow the complete cleansing of the Temple Mount and Jerusalem of all things Jewish. He knows that undermining the Jewish claim to Jerusalem is a thrust at the heart of the Jewish claims to the Holy Land.
The
Wall Street Journal, recently cited a Palestinian historian on this topic:
"On an Aug. 11 PA television program, "Jerusalem--History and Culture," Mr. Alawneh argued that the Jews invented their connection to Jerusalem. "It has no historical roots," he said, adding that the Jews are engaging in "an attack on history, theft of culture, falsification of facts, erasure of the truth, and Judaization of the place."
It is important for all defenders of Jerusalem to understand what is at stake in the debate over Jerusalem. It is not just another diplomatic talking point. When Israeli politicians and the American President and Secretary of State support the division of Jerusalem they are in fact assisting Abbas and his Palestinian allies to attain their ultimate goal: To rob Jews of their eternal capital. I am not suggesting that is why they are taking this negotiating position -- but if they are successful this what they would have accomplished.
Last week, Jordan's King Abdullah also voiced his opinion on Jerusalem. He called on the international community to stop Israel in Jerusalem:
"His Majesty King Abdullah instructed the government to work immediately and effectively to intensify political action in the international arena to highlight the seriousness and illegitimacy of Israeli violations against al Aksa Mosque and Jerusalem.... The King called on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities and take an immediate and firm position to stop all unilateral Israeli measures in Jerusalem and to put an end to Israeli violations of international laws and charters pertaining to holy sites.... The King noted that preserving Jerusalem and protecting it is a Hashemite and Jordanian priority and Jordan will never stop exerting all efforts to realize that objective."Abdullah has suddenly woken up on this issue because he does not want the Palestinians to become the guardians of Jerusalem's holy sites, he wants his Hashemite's to once again rule Jerusalem. Those were the days when Jews could not visit the Old City and Christians were severely restricted in their visits. They were also the days when the Jewish Quarter was destroyed and Jewish cemeteries desecrated.
Natan Sharansky once told a synagogue audience gathered in support of a united Jerusalem that we think we are saving Jerusalem when in fact Jerusalem is saving us. Today, more than ever we need to save Jerusalem because without Jerusalem there is no Jewish State.
It is an amazing thing there is even a discussion about Jerusalem. How can the Arab world honestly say the Jews have no historical connection to Jerusalem. Being so ignorant of history is really a sad testament to the education of the Arab world. It is about time that leaders of Israel point out that Jerusalem is not mentioned at all in the Koran. How is such an important city to the Muslims not mentioned in their holy text. On the other hand Jerusalem is mentioned in the Bible no less than 800 times! Time for the Israeli leaders to go on the offensive and point out that the Arabs are the ones who have no historical claim to Jerusalem.