Patheticism in the Middle East

Is this what pathetic means?

The US secretary of state has said final-status Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations could be "within reach... with a little more work"..But Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said there had been no breakthrough.  He said the latest meeting had been "positive and profound", but "there is still a gap between the Palestinian and Israeli positions".

..."I'm pleased to tell you that we have made real progress on this trip," Mr Kerry told reporters in Tel Aviv, before leaving the region.  "And I believe that with a little more work, the start of final-status negotiations could be within reach. We started out with very wide gaps, and we have narrowed those considerably."..."We made progress in every sector," he went on to say.

...Mr Netanyahu insisted that Israel was not blocking a return to negotiations. "We are not putting up any impediments on the resumption of the permanent talks for a peace agreement between us and the Palestinians," he said in remarks quoted by AFP news agency.  "There are things that we will strongly insist on in the talks themselves, especially security... there will be no agreement that will endanger Israelis' security."

The PA cannot provide Israel with security.

The PA does not recognize a Jewish national peoplehood.

The PA will not compromise on any territory.

The PA continues to sponsor incitement while lacking any peace promotion input.

The PA refuses any Jerusalem arrangement while fomenting a 'Jerusalem Denial' program.

The PA engages in disinventivity of any Jewish history in this land.

And what does Kerry do?

He's narrowing gaps.

The above gaps cannot be narrowed nor does the PA wish to do so.

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Liel Loses It on Arlosoroff

My comments there.

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On Both Sides of its Walls

For the record:

UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION

CONVENTION CONCERNING THE PROTECTION OF THE WORLD CULTURAL AND NATURAL HERITAGE

WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE

Thirty-seventh session
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
16 - 27 June 2013
Item of the Agenda 7A
Draft Decision 37 COM 7A.26 Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls (site proposed by Jordan) (C 148 rev)
Submitted by Algeria, Iraq, Qatar, United Arab Emirates
Date  21 June 2013

TEXT

Draft Decision: 37 COM 7A.26

I

The World Heritage Committee,
1. Having examined Document WHC-13/ 37.COM/7A.Add 2,
2. Recalling the relevant provisions on the protection of cultural heritage including the four Geneva Conventions (1949), the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 and its related protocols, the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972, the inscription of the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls at the request of Jordan on the World Heritage List (1981) and on the List of World Heritage in Danger (1982), and the recommendations, resolutions and decisions of UNESCO, including Decision 36 COM 7A.23 (I), adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012),
3. Reaffirming that nothing in the present decision, which aims at the safeguarding of the authenticity, integrity and cultural heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem on both sides of its Walls, shall in any way affect the relevant United Nations resolutions and decisions, in particular the relevant Security Council resolutions on the legal status of Jerusalem,
4. Deplores the continued Israeli failure to cooperate and facilitate the implementation of the World Heritage Committee Decision 34 COM 7A.20, which requests a joint World Heritage Centre/ICCROM/ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission to the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls and despite its own letter to the Director General of UNESCO dated 23 April 2013 accepting the Mission as reflected in the agreement reached at the 191st session of the Executive Board and as stipulated in the Executive Board 191 EX/Decision 9, and asks Israel to refrain from any new preconditions in order not to obstruct the implementation of the above mentioned agreement;
5. Deeply deplores the persistence of Israeli archaeological excavations and works in the Old City of Jerusalem and on both sides of its Walls and the failure of Israel to cease such works, and requests the Israeli authorities to prohibit all such excavations and works, in conformity with its obligations under the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 and its related protocols, the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972, and as clearly stated in the Delhi UNESCO Recommendation of 1956 concerning excavations undertaken in occupied territories;
6. Reiterates the necessity of cooperation to facilitate access to the Old City of Jerusalem and both sides of its Walls, including religious heritage sites therein, in the context of the UNESCO Conventions for the protection of the cultural heritage, and expresses its concern regarding the restricting obstacles imposed by the Israeli authorities on the freedom of access provided to Jordanian and Waqf experts to safeguard such sites;
7. Also deplores, in this regard, the damaging effect of the Jerusalem Light rail (tram line), itinerant at few meters from the Walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, which severely affects the visual integrity and the authentic character of the site and urges Israel to restore the original character of the site in conformity with its obligations under the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 and its related protocols and the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972 as well as the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Historic Urban Landscape;
8. Regrets the Jerusalem Municipality plan to build a two-line cable car system to connect the Mughrabi Quarter with the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem, and also urges Israel to prevent any damage to the integrity and authenticity of the property by abandoning the above mentioned project in conformity with its obligations under the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 and its related protocols and the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972;
9. Also regrets the decision of the Jerusalem District Planning and Building Committee, that approved the construction of a visitor centre on the Givati Parking lot in Silwan at a distance of twenty meters from the Walls of the Old City as well as its approval of the so called “Liba House” project, a huge structure of three storeys and approximately 3700 square meters in the Old City of Jerusalem, the extension of the Strauss Building and the Western Wall elevator, and further urges Israel to renounce to the above mentioned projects in conformity with its obligations under the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954 and its related protocols and the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972;
10. Requests the World Heritage Centre to continue applying the Reinforced Monitoring Mechanism to the Old City of Jerusalem on both sides of its Walls, including the Mughrabi Ascent, and also requests it to report every four months on this matter;
11. Thanks the international donors for their generous contributions to UNESCO projects for the Safeguarding of the Cultural Heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem on both sides of its Walls, and calls upon the international donor community to further support, through extra-budgetary funding, activities aimed at the safeguarding of the integrity and authenticity of the Old City of Jerusalem and both sides of its walls;
12. Also thanks the Director-General of UNESCO and the World Heritage Centre for their efforts aimed at the Safeguarding of the Cultural Heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem on both sides of its walls and invites them to report on this matter at the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2014;

II

13. Recalling 176 EX/Special Plenary Meeting Decision, and Executive Board 189 EX/ Decision 5 (II) relating to the Ascent to the Mughrabi Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem,
14. Taking into consideration the 12th and all previous Reinforced Monitoring Reports and their addenda prepared by the World Heritage Centre, 
15. Expresses its concern about the decision by the Jerusalem District Planning and Construction Commission on the town planning scheme for the Mughrabi Ascent, and the subsequent decision by Israel’s National Council for Planning and Construction to adopt “an alternative plan for the Mughrabi Ascent”, approved on 31 October 2010 by the above-mentioned Commission; 
16. Requests that, despite the decisions mentioned in paragraph 15, the design process of the Mughrabi Ascent be inclusive of, and accepted by, all parties concerned in accordance with obligations and duties of such parties as stipulated in the provisions of the relevant UNESCO Conventions on the protection of Cultural Heritage;
17. Reaffirms in this regard that no measures, unilateral or otherwise, shall be taken which will affect the authenticity, integrity and the distinctive character of the site, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972 and the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954;
18. Also notes in this regard reports of preliminary discussions reached by Jordan and Israel respectively regarding the Mughrabi Ascent which stipulate that no measures, unilateral or otherwise, shall be taken on the site in accordance with paragraph 17 above;
19. Acknowledges receipt of the Jordanian design for the restoration and preservation of the Mughrabi Ascent, submitted to the World Heritage Centre on 27 May 2011, and thanks Jordan for its cooperation in accordance with the provisions of the relevant UNESCO Conventions for the Protection of Cultural Heritage;
20. Expresses its concern regarding Israel’s submission and content of its plan for the Mughrabi Ascent, and requests that the World Heritage Centre be proactive in the evaluation of the design received in accordance with above paragraph 19;
21. Reiterates in this regard, the need for the parties concerned to cooperate on all related aspects of this issue and regrets Israel’s refusal to fulfil World Heritage Committee Decision 36 COM 7A.23.II, Executive Board 191 EX/Decision 5 (I)  and related UNESCO Resolutions and Decisions;
22. Expresses its concern regarding the continuous, intrusive archaeological demolitions and excavations in and around the Mughrabi Gate Ascent since 22 May 2012, and calls on the Israeli authorities to end such violations, respect the Status Quo, and cooperate with Jordanian and Waqf experts as the competent authorities to maintain and safeguard the site in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of 1972 and the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954;
23. Further regrets Israeli religious-extremist groups' provocative incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound through the Mughrabi Gate, and urges the Israeli authorities to take the necessary measures to prevent such abuses that violate the sanctity and integrity of the Compound and inflame tension on the ground;
24. Affirms, in this regard, the necessity to respect and safeguard the integrity, authenticity and cultural heritage of Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, as reflected in the Status Quo as a holy place for Muslim worship and as an integral part of a World Cultural Heritage site;
25. Thanks the Director-General for her attention to the sensitive situation in the Ascent and calls upon her to consult with the concerned parties on the dispatch of the necessary expertise to assess possible damages incurred to the site through the conduct of recent Israeli demolitions as referenced in the 12th  Reinforced Monitoring Report prepared by the World Heritage Centre and above paragraph 22;

III

26. Decides to retain the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

Do you think that maybe Israel and the world are in danger from this type of manipulation?

And this:

on both sides of its Walls

lacks the answer of who put up those walls in the first place and how did they get there?  Not only post-1967 but during the 19-year period of Jordanian illegal occupation.

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Weiner Whacks Anti-Zionist Open Zion Blogger

Open Zion's Ali Gharib is p*ssed off at Anthony Weiner.

Why?

This:

At the celebration in downtown New York last night marking the Supreme Court's ruling against anti-gay marriage legislation, Weiner told a questioner that he still believes Palestinian territory of the West Bank isn't militarily occupied by Israel. A tipster, who asked to remain anonymous, sent a video of the notoriously anti-Palestinian [?] politician to Open Zion. In the exchange, outside of the famous Stonewall Inn, the questioner asks, "Do you still believe the West Bank is not occupied?"

Weiner quickly responded: "Yes, I do. The status of that area is left to be decided by the people who're there."

"So it's not occupied by Israel?" the questioner persists.

"I gotta tell you: there are disagreements about what constitutes the West Bank,"

The video:

________________

P.S.

The New Republic is also very very upset.


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Dani Dayan Meets Top Republicans

In this picture, Dani Dayan, Yesha Council's new Foreign Envoy, with top Republicans in Washington at the House of Representatives:

including Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Chairman, House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Middle East and South Asia), Peter Roskam (Chief Deputy Whip),  Ed Royce (Chairman,  House Foreign Affairs Committee), Trent Franks (Armed Services Committee), Tom Cotton (member of the Financial Services Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee) and other leading Republican Representatives.

__________________

UPDATE

Another pic:

Others Dani met one-on-one: Sen. Tom Scott, Rep. Michelle Bachmann, Rep. Jim Jordan and many others.

______________________
______________________

Further UPDATE

Dear Friends:

I’d like to update you on a great roundtable discussion we hosted yesterday at the House Republican Conference, under Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, which featured Dani Dayan, Chief Foreign Envoy and former Chairman of the YESHA Council, the umbrella organization representing the Jewish population in Judea and Samaria.

Participants included Chief Deputy Whip Peter Roskam, Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Ed Royce, former Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Congressman Trent Franks, Congressman Tom Cotton, and representatives from over 10 major Jewish foreign policy organizations.

The discussion focused on the historic and strategic significance of Judea and Samaria, and on the current obstacles to peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, such as Holocaust denial, hero worship of terrorists, and incitement to violence by the highest levels of the Palestinian Authority. We also discussed the positive ways in which Arabs and Jews currently coexist in Judea and Samaria, including the tremendous economic and jobs boost that Jewish settlements have brought to the area since 1967.  The participants also spoke about Iran’s nuclear program, and the evolving situation in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East.

Nick Muzin
Director of Coalitions
House Republican Conference

__________________________________

P.S.


The Arabs have multiplied the situation:

A delegation of Israeli settlers has left for a visit to the United States in a bid to raise awareness of their situation and reinforce their position in the eyes of American politicians. Media reports say that the delegation includes members of the Council of Jewish Settlements, led by former head Danny Dayan.

A delegation of Israeli settlers has left for a visit to the United States in a bid to raise awareness of their situation and reinforce their position in the eyes of American politicians. Media reports say that the delegation includes members of the Council of Jewish Settlements, led by former head Danny Dayan. - See more at: http://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/americas/6427-settlers-head-for-washington-to-raise-awareness-among-political-elite#sthash.IDhtrcwQ.dpuf

A delegation of Israeli settlers has left for a visit to the United States in a bid to raise awareness of their situation and reinforce their position in the eyes of American politicians. Media reports say that the delegation includes members of the Council of Jewish Settlements, led by former head Danny Dayan. - See more at: http://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/americas/6427-settlers-head-for-washington-to-raise-awareness-among-political-elite#sthash.IDhtrcwQ.dpuf

A delegation of Israeli settlers has left for a visit to the United States in a bid to raise awareness of their situation and reinforce their position in the eyes of American politicians. Media reports say that the delegation includes members of the Council of Jewish Settlements, led by former head Danny Dayan. - See more at: http://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/americas/6427-settlers-head-for-washington-to-raise-awareness-among-political-elite#sthash.IDhtrcwQ.dpuf

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Expelled While Unconscious

Can you imagine this happening in Israel?

He fell unconscious after a stroke in Israel and woke up back in Gaza.

Ahmed Mahmoud Faranji — an uninsured and undocumented immigrant who had lived in Israel for about 30 years and worked in restaurants in the Tel Aviv area — was sent back to his homeland by a Jerusalem court order directly from Hadassah Hospital without ever giving his consent, supporters say.

Now Faranji is stuck in a hospital in Khan Yunnis and furious EU diplomats are demanding answers from Hadassah Hospital.

Well, it didn't.

 

It happened in ... New Jersey, in the United States of America:

He fell unconscious after a stroke in the U.S. and woke up back in Poland.

Wladyslaw Haniszewski — an uninsured and undocumented immigrant who had lived in the U.S. for about 30 years — was sent back to his homeland by a New Jersey hospital without ever giving his consent, supporters say.

Now Haniszewski is stuck in a hospital in the Polish town of Boleslawiec and furious diplomats are demanding answers from the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick.

Think about that.

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Where is "Occupied Palestine"?

Well, it is ... Israel:-

Dozens of Palestinian towns and villages in Wadi Ara, in northern 1948-occupied Palestine, are witnessing a general strike in protest against demolition of a Palestinian house in Arara town at dawn Wednesday by Israeli authorities.  Hundreds of Palestinians from the 1948-occupied territories staged a protest on Wednesday evening and closed the main street, in condemnation of the demolition of the house.

Well, when the PLO was founded in 1964, what "Palestine" did anyone think they were intent upon "liberating" if not Israel?

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Tel Shiloh 1937

Found here:

Caption:

1937. To Syria with the Bowens. Dec. 10-20. Shiloh, Prof. Schmidt explaining the sacred circle

I would surmise that the location is the crest of the Tel, where the new Tower is now located.

Will you be coming to the 2nd Shiloh Conference on the Bible and Archaeology this Thursday?

No, not this one.

This one:-

Thanks to LBD.



_____________________

P.S.  My neighbor, Yona Zoref, thinks that the angle would indicate a location closer to the area of the Pilgrims' Basilica, near the current Visitor's Center.

____________________

Another photograph, of the lintel at Jam'a A-Sittin:

(Other pictures, here.)



This is the caption: "Dec. 10-20. The lintel of the temple."  But that should be the Tabernacle, and even that is in error.

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Arab Ethnic Cleansing

No, not ethnic cleansing of Arabs.

Arabs ethnically cleansing Old Jerusalem of its Jews:

Caption:

1936. Arab strike. May 14th. A group of Orthodox Jews fleeing Old City guarded by Jewish policemen and British Tommy. 

Source.

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Drive-by Shooting Episode: 'Palestinan' Killed; Wife Injured

Reported:-

A Palestinian man was shot dead and his Egyptian wife was critically injured Friday by unidentified gunmen in the northern Sinai Bedouin town of Sheikh Zuweid, according to Egyptian security sources.

Ahmad Al-Marzouq Abu Bakra, 35, and his wife Yusriya Shehata Ahmad, 30, were travelling in their private car in the al-Ajra neighborhood of Sheikh Zuweid before the vehicle came under heavy fire, according to a security source. The source confirmed to Ma’an that the car flipped over after the driver received a deadly gunshot to the head.

As far as I know, there are no 'settlers' nor even Israelis living in Sheikh Zuweid.


And incidentally,

An American Jewish college student, Andrew Driscoll Pochter, 21, a native of Chevy Chase, Maryland, was killed in Alexandria, Egypt on Friday...Pochter, one of three people killed in Friday’s clashes, was stabbed to death by a protester, his family said...Pochter was later identified by his parents and university, Ohio’s Kenyon College, as an intern at AMIDEAST, a nonprofit organization devoted to promoting education in the Middle East and North Africa.

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The Islamic Nuclear Bomb Threat Comes From ... Pakistan?

Here.

While the United States and Israel incessantly obsess with the possibility of a future nuclear Iran, they barely ever raise such concerns about Iran's next door Islamic neighbour Pakistan that brandishes its nuclear weapons with Islamic zeal and barely concealed contempt for the "kufaar" -- Jews, Christians, Hindus, atheists and other non-Muslims.  But there are others inside Pakistan who do not share America and Israel's myopia...

... If one were to study the sources of Jew-hatred, they are invariably rooted in Pakistan and the Arab World. If it comes to terrorist attacks carried out around the globe, almost all of them have either originated in Pakistan, were carried out by young men of Pakistani ancestry or by jihadi terrorists who were trained on Pakistani soil. Else, they were planned and executed by Islamabad's intelligence agency, the ISI and its sponsored terrorist organizations. Yet, in the eyes of Israel and the Jewish Diaspora, it is Iran that is the anti-Semitic capital of the world, hell-bent on destroying the Jewish State.

Hmmm.

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When You Hear Bad News from Israel

Whenever you're upset about some 'bad' news from Israel, "pruice-tag", religious extremists, whatever, that even caused you embarrassment about your love for Israel, try remembering this news from, Turkey:

A British teenager is still fighting for his life after he was stripped naked and 'stabbed 17 times' for kissing a local girl in a Turkish bar.  Dwayne Ward, 17, was found soaked in blood in a garden in the Tepe district of Marmaris, by locals after a night out with his older brother on Tuesday.  A police report revealed Dwayne said: 'I was having fun while I was out and I kissed a Turkish girl at the bar I was in.'

...He was found at 7.30am with injuries including cuts to the throat, chest, groin, legs and back.  The teenager was taken to the intensive care unit of the Marmaris State Hospital - he is reportedly in a critical condition.

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32nd Temple Institute Conference

August 8:-

Main issue, the Half Sheqel.

Main guest: Deputy-Minister for Religious Affairs Rav Eli De-Haan.

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Poster Terminology

The Left are claiming that the new Begin Road extending south is doing irreparable damage * and splitting Bet Safafa and so they are protesting.

And they plastered up a poster reading "Begin is Dividing Jerusalem":-

That 'sound-byte', "...Divide Jerusalem", was employed by the Likud against Shimon Peres in 1996.

Photo credit: IBrown

My only question is that since Bet Safafa was divided for the 19 years during Jordan's illegal occupation of a section of east Jerusalem, why is the issue of splitting now so sacred?


___________________

*

Supreme Court gives Israel 30 days to resolve controversy over East Jerusalem highwayResidents of Beit Safafa oppose road that would cut their neighborhood in half.

Israel's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the state must find a solution for the problems posed to residents of an East Jerusalem neighborhood by the construction of a highway that would cut the neighborhood in half.

The court refrained from ordering the state to cease the construction of the highway...The Supreme Court arrived at its decision on Wednesday after hearing an appeal by Beit Safafa residents, who began protesting against the road six months ago. The district court rejected the appeal despite the fact that the road was partially planned in the 1980's, and that it passes meters from residents' houses.

Islamic Misintepretation

But isn't Baitul Maqdis "the Holy Temple"?

Question:
I want to know the differences and the locations of Masjid Aqsa and Baitul Maqdis.

Fatwa:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam (may Allaah exalt his mention) is His slave and Messenger.

Baytul-Maqdis is itself the Al-Aqsa mosque about which Allaah Says (what means): {Exalted is He who took His Servant [i.e. Prophet Muhammad by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing.} [Quran 17:1] It is also confirmed that the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said: “When the tribe of Quraysh belied me, I stood on the Hijr of Isma’eel (Ishmael) [The area adjacent to the northwest side of the Ka’bah, enclosed by a low semi-circular wall in the sacred mosque in Makkah] and Allaah showed me Baytul-Maqdis and I started describing it to them while I was looking at it.”
This is the meaning in principle, however, sometimes we mention Baytul-Maqdis to refer to something greater than it. Hence, sometimes it refers to the area in which Baytul-Maqdis and its precincts are, as in the saying of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said: “Baytul-Maqdis will be conquered.”

It is also used to refer to Jerusalem which includes Al-Aqsa mosque in the general meaning. However, by Baytul-Maqdis we do not refer to the entire Palestine or Greater Syria, and these are not considered holy as Baytul-Maqdis, however, it may be included in the surrounding area of Al-Aqsa that has this characteristic (i.e. sanctity). Allaah Says (what means): {Exalted is He who took His Servant [i.e. Prophet Muhammad] by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing.} [Quran 17:1]

And there's this:

Al-Masjid al-Haram (The sacred mosque) in Makka is the oldest mosque on the earth, then al-Masjid al-Aqsa.

Abu Zar (RAA) said: 'I asked Allah's Messenger: Which is the oldest Mosque on earth? The Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said: "al-Majid al-Haram". Then I asked: which one is the next? He replied: "al-Masjid al-Aqsa". Then I asked: How many years between them? (i.e. of building them). He said: "Forty years, and pray when time of some prayer comes, since every place is a Mosque." [ Bukhari and Muslim ]
As for the date of building al-Aqsa, there is difference among scholars concerning this point. But, it is reported that Adam (SAW) first built it according to Ibn Hajar and he preferred this opinion. It is also reported that Yaqoob Ibn Ishaq Ibn Ibrahim (SAW) was the first builder. Then, it was rebuilt by Sulaiman (SAW).

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Darn It, It's the Ad-Dajjaal

If you feel uncomfortable about being perceived as a fanatic, zealot, irrational religious nut, point them here:

Ad-Dajjaal is derived from the Arabic word “Dajal”, which means “lying”, and it is the proper name of a person who will come out near the end of time. Allaah The Exalted Will Give him supernatural powers, and He Will Make him a trial and affliction for people. He will claim divinity and will ask people to worship him instead of Allaah The Almighty. He will be a great trial for humankind, because his emergence will shake people’s beliefs and raise serious doubts as to the creed. Consequently, he will persuade some people to believe in him, while others will follow him in hope or out of fear. On the other hand, some people will realize that he is a liar and they will either escape from him or even defy and resist him.

All the Prophets, May Allaah Exalt their mention, have warned their nations from him generally, but the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) spoke in detail about the dire threat he poses to people’s creed and religion, as well as his physical description, supernatural abilities and deceptive methods. The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) also referred to his followers, the period that he will stay on earth, how he will die, and who is going to kill him. All these things were accurately detailed in the prophetic Hadeeths, which covered the whole life of Ad-Dajjaal; and the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) did so to advise his Ummah and shield its religion from doubts.

In this article, we will speak in detail about Ad-Dajjaal.

More here and here.

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Rachel Corrie Resurrected in Jerusalem

Just caught this (thanks to AK):

The Khan Theatre, sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Sport (Minister Limor Livnat) and the Jerusalem Municipality (Mayor Nir Barkat),will be presenting

They Call Me Rachel Corrie

Is this really officially backed ?


Maybe ask the Mayor's media advisors? 

 972 (0)2-629-4624


Limor Livant, Minister of Culture?   

972-(0)3-6367-222

Background.

And another poster near Liberty Bell Park:

 

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Honor Your Muslim Parents With ... Flags

I am sure I know little about this 

but what I do know is that it's a new campaign that has been launched called "Flags Foundation to revive the al-Aqsa mosque" to "honor one's parents" under the slogan "their way to the far [Aqsa] .. Your way to the Commission. " Through the project that anyone can be performed on a bus to the al-Aqsa mosque in the holy month of Ramadan and reward will come to his parents.

Professor Wafik Darwish, director of "Foundation flags", said: "The project comes on the eve of Ramadan, the month of charity and good work, as if this is a bus carrying worshipers to Al-Aqsa Mosque."

If I comprehend, charity donations will transport you to Jerusalem as if one was physically present on the Temple Mount.

The "flags Foundation" is working on several projects to revive the Al-Aqsa Mosque, including a march to convey worshipers from all Palestinian towns in the interior to pray as well as the "maximum fund baby" [?].

We have the "Fax-to-the-Kotel".

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Words of Wisdom

Has it become time that the absurd paradigm governing the Israel-Palestinian and Arab-Israeli conflict as well as the “peace process” be abandoned or challenged?

After all, this narrative has become increasingly ridiculous. Here is what is close to being the official version:

The Palestinians desperately want an independent state and are ready to compromise to obtain that goal. They will then live peacefully alongside Israel in a two-state solution. Unfortunately, this is blocked either by: a) misunderstanding on both sides or b) in the recent words of the Huntington Post, “the hard-line opponents who dominate Israel's ruling coalition.” Israel is behaving foolishly, too, not seeing that, as former President Bill Clinton recently said, Israel needs peace in order to survive. One aspect—perhaps a leading one—why Israel desperately needs peace is because of Arab demographic growth. The main barrier to peace are the Jewish settlements.

This interpretation has nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with reality.

Barry Rubin

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The Peace Gap

As Aaron Lerner notes, one question in this poll is wrongly wordly but first, the poll:

New Wave Poll:  

56.9%:28.6% Support talks but 55.4%:30.9% deal impossible
Do you support renewing the negotiations with the Palestinians?
Support 56.9%; Oppose 28.6%; Don't know 14.5%
Do you believe it is possible to reach a permanent arrangement?
No 55.4%; Yes 30.9%;  Don't know 13.7%
Do you support the Palestinian approach, namely release of prisoners, easing movement, etc.?
Support 19.6%; Oppose 69.3%; Don't know 11.1%
Assuming the negotiations are renewed, what should Israel refuse to concede on?
[AL: the wording of this question is problematic as forces the respondent to pick one thing]
Right of return 30.3%; Division of Jerusalem 35.5%; Settlement blocs 7.0%; All the territories 17.6%; Don't know 9.7%

What puzzles me is how can 7% seek not to yield the "settlement blocs" and yet 17.6% do not wish to return all of the territories?

Does that mean they accept the Arab definition of "occupation" as including all of Jerusalem?  And that would reflect the par?

But at least Jerusalem is still the highest priority.

And again, the peculiarity of Israel's public opinion on peace is evident - they are "for" but pessimistic about its chances.

But are they "for" because no one wants to be "against" or they genuinely feel that peace is a benefit, is good and a worthy goal?

^

The Littering of the Literati

Some of Israel's literati - Eyal Meged, Zeruya Shalev, Said Kashua and Alona Kimchi - visited the Arab village of Khirbet Jenyah whose residents, most who reside in caves, are threatened with disengagement.

Shalev was quoted saying,

This Biblical setting and this Biblical way of life bring to mind two famous stories of injustice: the vineyard of Navot the Yizre’eli, and the poor man’s lamb. It sounds very similar, that the state is not letting them hold on even to that vineyard, to that poor man’s lamb.

Poetic license, it seems, is unlimited.

Right-wing religious nationalists cannot use the Bible but all of a sudden the Bible is employed to the benefit of the Arabs.

Think: if the "setting" is Biblical, whose "setting" is it?

If they are engaged in a "Biblical way of life", whose life is it?

Were Arabs present at that time?

Whose land is this?

Thus does not negate protection of civil personal liberties, of course, but if this is the thinking of our outstanding (best-selling) cultural intellectuals, who needs to read their books?


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Abbas' Diseased Mind

The diseased theo-ideology of the Palestinian Authority regarding the "Temple Denial/Jerusalem Denial" phenomenon starts at the top as PMW informs us.  

This is a quotation from Mahmoud Abbas:

"[Israel's] evil and dangerous plot to destroy Al-Aqsa [Mosque] and build the alleged Temple"

Some of the details:

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas continues to promote the PA libel that Israel is scheming and acting to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem... -

Abbas: "All these [Israeli] actions indicate an evil and dangerous plot to destroy Al-Aqsa [Mosque] and build the alleged Temple. Unfortunately, these dangers, which are clear for everyone to see, have yet to receive proper Arab, Islamic and international responses."

Abbas' reference to the "alleged Temple" is part of the language the PA routinely uses to deny Israel's history in Jerusalem...taking Jerusalem away from Israel is a religious Islamic obligation of the highest level, a "fard ayn" - a personal Islamic commandment incumbent on every Muslim:

Abbas: "I say to the leaders of our Arab nation and to its peoples: Jerusalem and its environs are a trust that Allah entrusted to us. Saving it [Jerusalem] from the settlement monster and the danger of Judaization and confiscation is a personal [Islamic] commandment [Arabic: fard ayn] incumbent on all of us. Therefore, I call all of you to serious and urgent action to save [Jerusalem] and to make available all possibilities in order to strengthen our resolve and to maintain its historical, cultural and religious character."
[Al-Jazeera TV, March 27, 2010]

_________________

And this:

Contrary to conventional wisdom, the obstacle to peace in the Middle East isn’t Netanyahu or Israeli settlements. It’s the hate and intransigence that drives the Palestinian political culture that makes it impossible for Abbas to ever sign a deal.

The disease spreads (thanks EOZ):

The "Al-Aqsa Heritage Religious Trust Foundation" rejected late Thursday, 06.27.2013, the words of an expert in what is called "the Israel Antiquities Authority" regards archaeological findings such as stones and jewelry and seals in the area of ​​the Al Aqsa Mosque, and claimed that the Hebrew dating was falsely attributed to the period of the First and Second Temple. He warned the institution that these lies and myths are a figment of the imagination, while confirming that international archaeologists and even Israelis confirmed through vigorous, scientific and objective research and exploration the lack of information or any effects that would point to a structure of either 'first' or 'second' in the region of Al-Aqsa Mosque and its surroundings, nor in the city of Jerusalem, stressing that the Arabs Canaanites were the first residents and built Jerusalem, and Her Highness Jebus and Amrha [?] inhabited without interruption over thousands of years, while she lived Jerusalem Islamic period over four centuries...

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The Lubavitcher Rebbe and Shiloh

On July 1, 1990, two representatives of Shiloh, Era Rappaport and Moshe Batish, received blessings and the "dollar" from the Lubavitcher Rebbe for the success of the community and the Hesder Yeshiva:

Era (l), Moshe (c) with the Rebbe

The video here, courtesy of Akiva Nussbaum, Jewish Educational Media | Research.

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Over 60 Today Ascended the Temple Mount

Mostly from Kedumim:

MK Moshe Feiglin is banned so he couldn't join. 

From an Islamist site: 

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Do You Doubt the Biblical Narrative?

And as for the doubts about the Biblical narrative, try this book:-

BOUND FOR EXILE, Israelites and Judeans under Imperial Yoke, Documents from Assyria and Babylonia
 
by Mordechai Cogan

Bound for Exile, the companion volume of The Raging Torrent, presents a collection of cuneiform texts that relate to the Israelites and Judeans living under the yoke of the great Mesopotamian empires during the 8th-6th centuries BCE. Through these texts, uncovered in ancient Assyria and Babylonia, as well as in the Land of Israel, we learn of the masses of Israelites and Judeans deported to distant parts of the ancient Near East, and the few left behind to live alongside new settlers who were in turn transferred to Israel. 

Little is known of the life led by the exiles abroad. The Hebrew Bible relates to them only in the briefest fashion, but this historical void is filled, in part, by texts from the administration of the Assyrian and Babylonian empires – letters, lists, legal and economic documents – that make mention of Israelites in their daily pursuits. In addition, a number of wall reliefs from Assyrian palaces preserve ancient “photographs” showing the deportees being driven from their homes and at work in the service of their imperial masters. Taken together, these documents throw light on a dark period in the history of the People of Israel.

I liked this, calling the foreign non-Jews:

new settlers who were in turn transferred to Israel

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Altering the Status Quo Just A Little

At the northern section of the raised platform on the Temple Mount today:

Minor?

Maybe.

Non-instrusive?

Maybe.

But if it is minor and non-instrusive, why can't Jews benefit a little?

Oh, is there professional archaelogical supervision or just that policeman?

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Marching to ... Shchem?

Who are those marching to Shchem (Nablus) through the Sanur Wadi?

"Settlers"?

Right-wing nationalist Land of Israel enthusiasts?

No.

Left-wing Marxist socialist Palmahniks.

1944.

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At the Temple Mount Conference

Last night, the Temple Mount Conference was held:

I was in Panel No. 3, activists discussing the past failures and successes.

One of the issues was are we Temple-oriented or Temple Mount-oriented?

I declared that two reasons for relative failure in the first 25 years or so was do to Rabbinical opposition and that Gush Emunim refused to engage in the campaign (because of Rabbi Tzvi Yehudah Kook's stance).  Those two obastacles - lack of backing for an issue deemed religious and lack of motivational leadership and  organizational infrastructure - was quite problematic.

I also said that in Hebrew, the term is Har Habayit, the Mount of the House/Temple, and that the Mount, that is, the physical, the archaeology, the general historical importance of the site such as the battles of the Zealots and Bar-Kochba's warriors as also those of the Hasmonean Revolt who sacrificed as valuable on offering in their lives as were the animal sacrifices, come first before the Temple and all this is needed so that a common language with the majority of Israelis who, for most, the idea, at best, of a Temple is quaintly tolerated, will be formulated so we can make better inroads.

Yehudah Glick made a not-too-smart remark ("I am happy Yehudah [Etzion] tried to blow up the Dome of the Rock and happy that he ddidn't succeed") and Yosef Elabuam sais the only way he could judge if that conspiracy would have been good is if had the government decided not to rebuild the destroyed building, but he was doubtful that would have happened and more probably, we Israeli's would have had to cough up the money to rebuild the structure.

Rabbi Yaakov Medan revealed (again, actually) that former heads of the GSS implored him to continue to ascend so that a Jewish presence offsets the Wqaf.

Some pics:

Nadav Shragai

Dalia Dorner

(l-r) Arnon Segal, Rav Yaakov Meidan, Rav Davod Stav, Rav Yuval Cherlow

credit: YMedad

and my panel:

(l-r) David Bruckner, Yehudit Dasberg, Yehudah Glick, 

Yisrael Medad and Yosef Elbaum

credit: Tomer Persico

-----------------------------------

Oh, and for those doubting even the existence of a Temple, etc., etc., try this:

Three complete cooking pots and a small ceramic oil lamp were uncovered inside a small cistern in a drainage channel that runs from the  Shiloah Pool in the City of David to Robinson’s Arch, in archaeological excavations the Israel Antiquities Authority is conducting near the Western Wall

...Recently a small cistern belonging to a building was exposed in an archaeological excavation the Israel Antiquities Authority is conducting near the Western Wall, in the vicinity of Robinson’s Arch in the Jerusalem Archaeological Park. Inside the cistern were three intact cooking pots and a small ceramic oil lamp that date to the time of the Great Revolt. The vessels were discovered inside the drainage channel that was exposed in its entirety from the Shiloah Pool in the City of David to the beginning of Robinson’s Arch.

Photograph of the finds in the cistern: Vladimir Naykhin

According to Eli Shukron, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, “This is the first time we are able to connect archaeological finds with the famine that occurred during the siege of Jerusalem at the time of the Great Revolt. The complete cooking pots and ceramic oil lamp indicate that the people went down into the cistern where they secretly ate the food that was contained in the pots, without anyone seeing them, and this is consistent with the account provided by Josephus”.

 _____________________

From INN:-

Rabbi Yaakov Medan of Har Etzion Yeshiva spoke at the Begin Center Conference on the Temple Mount, "The Shin Bet Jewish Division Director told me Jewish presence on the Mount is essential for maintaining our sovereignty. He told me that in order to accommodate this trend he would increase the number of agents and security personnel on the Temple Mount."

Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner said she felt the issue of Jews praying on the Mount was not within the Court's jurisdiction, "We would never rule to prohibit this basic right."

and another:

Rabbi David Stav, a candidate for the position of Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi, said that it was the responsibility of the government to ensure a Jewish presence on the Mount, and to allow freedom of religion for Jews at the site. The government also had a responsibility, he said, to ensure that “the Arab enemies of Israels do not destroy the Jewish heritage of the site” by dismantling archaeological finds.

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