Stand for Israel

Sometimes a headline says it all

Ha'aretz: "Hamas: War will settle Jerusalem dispute, not talks"

Temple Mount heating up again

Heavy rioting despoiled the Temple Mount and areas around it over the weekend.

On Thursday, just prior to the latest outbreak of violence, Rabbi Eckstein wrote about how the Mount, "Described by Jewish tradition as God's dwelling place on earth...has today become a pawn used by cynical Palestinian leaders—used not to draw us closer to the Divine, but to inflame passions and foment troubles."

Read the whole piece here.

Major dig planned for Western Wall

Arutz Sheva:

Israel is planning a major archaeological dig under the Western Wall (Kotel) plaza, opposite the Temple Mount, officials announced Thursday. The excavations will create an archaeological park directly underneath the area where worshippers currently stand while praying at the Kotel.

The current prayer area will remain open, supported by pillars, while a new area will be added underneath, at the level at which worshippers at the ancient Temple stood in the past.

The dig may be met with harsh reactions from Muslim and Arab leaders in Israel and the Palestinian Authority, many of whom have accused Israel of attempting to damage the Al-Aksa Mosque on the Temple Mount. Jerusalem-area Muslims recently rioted for several days after it was rumored that “Jewish settlers” had planned to pray on the Temple Mount

History shows anti-Jewish rumors lead to Palestinian riots

Barry Rubin looks at the historical record and finds that, sadly, some things don't change:

In August 1929, wild rumors that Jews had attacked Arabs, cursed the name of Islam’s founder, and were about to seize the Temple Mount led to inflammatory sermons in mosques, followed by massive Arab riots. More than 105 Jews were killed by Arabs; not a single Arab was killed by a Jew.

The exact same thing happened—albeit with far fewer casualties—in 1996, 2000, 2009, and at several points in between. The pattern tells a great deal about why the conflict doesn’t end and in fact stays a great deal the same.

How will Ateek respond?

We've spoken before about Naim Ateek, a Palestinian Anglican priest who is also director of the stridently anti-Israel Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. Over at the CAMERA blog, Dexter Van Zile wonders aloud how Ateek may respond to the violence currently taking place on and around the Temple Mount in Jerusalem:

Palestinian leaders are falsely accusing Israel of "besieging" the [Dome of the Rock] mosque. If history is any predictor, this is a prelude to increased violence. What will Ateek do? Will he affirm Palestinian propaganda and incitement? Or will he speak truth to power and condemn leaders in the West Bank for lying about Israel? Will he encourage the Palestinian people to remain calm? Or will he remain silent? If Naim Ateek truly is a man of peace, now is the time for him to step up and tell his Palestinian Muslim brothers and sisters to refrain from violence, not to riot, and to not throw stones at Israelis.

Breaking news: Jews are living in Jerusalem

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is warning the world that Jerusalem is being "Judaized." Apparently, he's riled that Jews are buying properties in the Holy City.

In other world news, reports are coming in that Rome is being Romanized as Romans are buying houses to live in there.

(In all seriousness, many Jerusalemites do lament that too many Jews who live abroad buy vacation properties in Jerusalem and drive up prices in the holy city. But, then, those same Jerusalemites are also aware that the "Judaization" of Jerusalem took place thousands of years ago.)