The US International Religious Freedom Report 2010

From Israel and the Occupied Territories
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
International Religious Freedom Report 2010
November 17, 2010

This is the level of serious research:

Some Jewish groups during the reporting period called for the destruction of the Islamic Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque to enable the rebuilding of a third Jewish Temple. In April 2010 a group called Eretz Israel Shelanu sponsored a series of advertisements on 200 Jerusalem city buses illustrating a reconstructed Jewish Temple over the Dome of the Rock; the advertisements were removed by the franchiser after the buses, which were mostly assigned to routes in East Jerusalem, provoked criticism and threats toward the bus company.

compared to this:

Hamas efforts to bolster the conservative Islamic nature of Gaza disturbed some Gazan Christians, and they raised concerns that Hamas failed to defend their rights as religious minorities.

"Failed to defend their rights"?

They murder Christians in Gaza. At least in 2007 they did.

And this:

Hamas largely tolerated the small Christian presence in Gaza and did not force them to abide by Islamic law, although Christians were indirectly affected by Hamas's religious ideology. Hamas did not sufficiently investigate or prosecute religiously driven crimes committed by Muslim extremist vigilante groups in Gaza.

But they got this right:

Hamas leadership also played a role in inciting violence on the Haram al Sharif/Temple Mount in September, February, and March, and Hamas sympathizers joined activists from Israel’s Islamic Movement Northern Branch to throw stones down onto Jewish worshipers at the Western Wall from the courtyard of the Al Aqsa Mosque following prayers.

P.S. The rest of the Temple Mount theme there:

The government of Israel, as a matter of stated policy, opposes non-Muslim worship at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount since 1967. Israeli police generally did not permit public prayer by non-Muslims and publicly indicated that this policy remained operative even though non-Muslims visited the compound. Israeli police regulated traffic in and out of the compound and screened non-Muslims for religious paraphernalia. However, in several instances during the reporting period, Israeli police reportedly facilitated the entrance of Jewish groups who attempted to perform religious services at the site.

The government of Israel during the reporting period severely restricted access for Muslims in the Occupied Territories to the Haram al-Sharif and occasionally restricted access for Muslims resident in Jerusalem. While West Bank Muslims with permits to enter Jerusalem were generally able to visit the site, and in isolated cases permits were issued for Muslims to enter Jerusalem for religious purposes, Israel's permitting regime generally restricted most West Bank Muslims from accessing the Haram al-Sharif; Muslims from Gaza were provided no opportunity by the government of Israel to access the site. Israeli security authorities in Jerusalem frequently restricted access to Friday prayers at the Haram al-Sharif for residents in East Jerusalem. Citing security concerns, authorities also frequently barred entry to male residents under the age of 50, and sometimes barred women under the age of 45. Infrequently, the Haram al-Sharif would be closed entirely, often after skirmishes at the compound between Arab youth and Israeli police. Israeli authorities in some instances barred specific individuals from the compound, including high-ranking Palestinian officials and Jerusalem Islamic Waqf employees. Waqf officials claim the Israeli security regime has reduced average attendance at Friday prayers from 45,000 prior to the Second Intifada to no more than 30,000 presently.

Waqf officials complained that Israeli police increasingly violate agreements regarding control of access to the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount site. Israeli police have de facto control of the compound by stationing police outside each entrance to the site and conducting routine patrols on the compound. Israeli police have exclusive control of the Mughrabi Gate entrance to the compound and in general allow non-Muslim visitors to enter the compound through the gate during set visiting hours. Waqf employees are stationed inside each gate and on the compound, and they may object to the presence of particular persons, such as individuals dressed immodestly or causing disturbances, but they lack effective authority to remove persons from the site.

Israeli authorities and Jerusalem Islamic Waqf officials generally prohibited non-Muslim worship at the Haram al-Sharif. The Israeli High Court ruled in 1997 that "Jews, even though their right to the Temple Mount exists and stands historically, are not permitted to currently actualize their right to perform public prayer on the Temple Mount." Although Orthodox Jewish teaching discourages Jewish visits to the compound, some Jewish organizations have challenged these restrictions. During the reporting period, several Jewish groups visited the compound, escorted by Israeli police, and performed religious acts such as prayers and prostration. Waqf officials condemned the visits, and in some instances, the visits initiated violence between Arab youth and Israeli police. Christians were also prohibited from performing public prayers at the site.

There were also disputes between the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf and Israeli authorities over Israeli restrictions on Waqf attempts to carry out maintenance and physical improvements to the compound and its mosques. Israeli officials said the Waqf is required to coordinate all changes to the compound with the Israeli government; Waqf officials generally refuse to coordinate maintenance and upkeep because they say it violates the status quo. The approval process for a permanent ramp leading to the Mughrabi Gate of the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount continued during the reporting period; however, excavations in the immediate vicinity of the Mughrabi Gate did not proceed.

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