Palestinians Remove Claim To Western Wall After U.S. Objects

By Michele Chabin
Religion News Service

JERUSALEM (RNS) The Palestinian government has pulled a report stating that Jews have no historic connection to the Western Wall following condemnation from the U.S. State Department and others.

The study, which was prepared by Al-Mutawakel Taha, a well-known writer and official with the Palestinian Ministry of Information, stated that the Western Wall -- the holiest site in Judaism -- is actually part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, Islam's third holiest site.

On Tuesday (Nov. 30), the U.S. State Department called the report "factually incorrect, insensitive and highly provocative."

A State Department spokesman said his agency had "repeatedly" told the Palestinian Authority to "consistently combat all forms of delegitimization of Israel, including denying historic Jewish connections to the land."

For years, Palestinian officials have attempted to claim sole rights over traditionally Jewish holy sites in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, both of which Israel captured during the 1967 Middle East War.

To the consternation of Jews around the world, Palestinian leaders recently persuaded UNESCO to declare two sites that Jews revere as the burial places of biblical patriarchs and matriarchs in Hebron and Bethlehem as protected Palestinian sites.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to recognize Jewish religious and historical ties to the Holy Land.

"Turn to your people and tell them: 'There is a Jewish people here. They have been living here for close to 4,000 years. We recognize this people. We recognize their historic connection to this land and this city."

Although unnamed sources in the Palestinian Information Ministry told the Jerusalem Post that hackers had removed the study from an official website, an unnamed Palestinian official told The Washington Post that the ministry decided to pull it "because it does not reflect our position."

On Wednesday, Taha told the Associated Press that his study was backed "by facts."

"I'm not against the Jews," Taha said. "The research says it's for Muslims, not for Jews."

Comments

[JerryLevy]

03:00 PM on 12/10/2010

Simply stated, the Palestinian Ministry of Information issued a factually incorrect document. What is not stated is that there was a specific purpose to this. Delegitimizing the Jewish claim to E. Jerusalem holy sites is a fundimental tactic in the Palestinian Israeli conflict. One of the reasons the Palestinians periodically riot over archeological digs in E. Jeursalem is that when Jewish artifacts are found, it repeatedly proves a Jewish existence there from biblical times which is something the Palestinians are working hard to discredit.

[Daveh88]

06:45 PM on 12/06/2010

We have Record from the Romans proving that this mount is that of the Second Temple. While no archeological proof has been found the the existence of the first temple (some stuff has been found but no evidence of a temple, though objects with proto-hebrew script have been found dating to that era). The Arabs cannot just ignore the huge amounts of Archeological evidence and roman records for political purposes.

[hamba2han]

06:11 AM on 12/07/2010

The Bible describes that the Temple was built above the Gihon Spring so that the water could be drawn up for purification purposes.

This biblical account alone makes it impossible for the Haram al-Sharif to be the site of the lost Temples since there is no trace of any natural spring, past or present, which existed near it's vicinity.

Since Jews are basing their claims on the site of the lost Temples according to what is written in ancient scriptures, then should they not believe what is stated in the Torah describing how Solomon's Temple was built above the Gihon Spring?

Since there is no trace whatsoever of any natural spring being found near the Haram al-Sharif, then it really cannot be the site of the lost Temples, simple as that.

[LIbislife]

05:22 PM on 12/07/2010

water was believed to be brought in to the temple mount via aquaducts or canals from outside the city.

http://www.bible.ca/archeology/bible-archeology-jerusalem-temple-mount-threshing-floor-aqueduct.htm

[Daveh88]

06:27 PM on 12/07/2010

Actually there is a spring running through a artificial canal and cisterns under Jerusalem that goes under the temple mount. the tunnels date back to before Solomon times (also seals with the names of the biblical priest clans on them plus pots with proto-hebrew script and other stuff from the first temple area). and have been expanded over the years. If you go to Israel you can take a tour of these canals (you have to know someone with security access like an archeologist to get in). there have been several TV crews that documented the tunnels and the water canals. you are flat out wrong, do make up crap to justify a point, USE FACTS like a normal person.

[Stirner]

11:19 PM on 12/05/2010

Would the world have been a better place for humans if Abraham had never been born? No endless, bloody, and mindless religious squabbles among the Monotheists over which "God" is the "true" God? No jealous "God" cursing the world upon its creation, and making those who believe obey, at the cost of eternal punishment, a countless number of absurd rules and regulations? If there is a God, then it is not the angry God of Abraham and Issac. Send this tribal god back to the Mideast from whence he came. One need not be an atheist to reject Jehovah.

[LIbislife]

05:23 PM on 12/07/2010

sounds like you are the angry one

[Deep77]

12:07 AM on 12/08/2010

The irony is that all Muslims, Jews, and Christians worship this crazy god of Abraham, and they cannot decide how to live next to one another.

[Daleri Rileda]

10:20 PM on 12/05/2010

The sad and ironic thing is that many of the "Palestinians" are actually Jews themselves and they are the very ones getting the raw end of the deal because of their fanaticism and because none of the Arab countries want to take them in or help them out while the Israeli Palestinians are doing well.

Somebody should get out the real facts of what is going on and the Palestinians themselves need to chill out, go to school and learn a useful trade, profession or something instead of being a poor brainwashed radical. Not that materialism is the answer, it is not, but a good and healthy state of mind is much more of an answer. Yeshua is the ultimate answer but that takes some learning.

[Schweik]

04:00 PM on 12/06/2010

"...instead of being a poor brainwashe­d radical." immediately followed by "Yeshua is the ultimate answer."
LMAO....
I love Internet !!!

[dannybuild]

08:27 PM on 12/04/2010

It is disgusting that the Palestinians try to get away with such outlandish claims. At least once ina while they are pulled up for it

[Kramerica-Industries]

12:13 PM on 12/04/2010

It is with in Palestinian best interest that the Western Wall be considered a holy site to the Jewish people. If some archaeological finding will prove that the Western wall is not the outer wall of the temple(not that I think it isn't) then the Jewish people will get be reminded and forced to understand how the Western Wall isn't really Judaisms holiest site as is stated everywhere (even Benjamin Netanyah mistakenly called it that).
Judaisms holiest site is the Temple Mount on which Al-Aqsa Mosque was built.
The existence of the Western Wall as a remnant of the Temple leaves the Jews with a place to pray in Jerusalem and allows the continuation of the status quo in which the Palestinian Waqf controls the Temple Mount and Only Muslim are allowed to pray on Judaisms holiest site.
Hopefully Palestinians understand trying to rob the Jewish people of the Western Wall in the way they did in most other Jewish holy sites is not in their interests.

[Schweik]

12:09 AM on 12/05/2010

Yes, the Arabs certainly are, Daleri.

[Daleri Rileda]

03:51 PM on 12/04/2010

You must be trying to use the power of suggestion.

[Kramerica-Industries]

09:35 AM on 12/05/2010

This whole Jews have no historic connection to the Western Wall things really helped Israeli PR.
Nothing exposes Palestinian aim to take over 100% of Israel then when they come up and say Jews have no historic connection to the Western Wall. This moronic Palestinian claim was a blessing for Israel.
When the Palestinian pressure UNESCO to claim Jewish religious sites like Rachel’s Tomb and the Cave of the Patriarchs to be mosques its hard for people to understand the fact these are Jewish sites and this was done by political pressure and not historic facts.
But when they claim the Western Wall a site the whole world recognize as the center of Jewish life is Muslim and Jews have nothing to do with it some lies are just too big for the world to swallow and it leads people to understand to what degree will the Palestinians be willing to lie in order to disown the Jewish people in Israel.

Ottoman document found by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, in 1830 the Turks issued a firman (royal decree) that gave legal force to Rachel’s Tomb being recognized as a Jewish holy site. The governor of Damascus sent a written order to the mufti of Jerusalem to fulfill the sultan’s order: “The tomb of esteemed Rachel, the mother of our Lord Joseph... they [the Jews] are accustomed to visit it from ancient days; and no one is permitted to prevent them or oppose them [from doing] this.”

[JayPhilosopher]

10:38 AM on 12/04/2010

The State Department should know that you cannot dictate history by fiat. The claims and counterclaims have to be examined and determined by people of good will. Simply declaring one position right and another position wrong does not work.

[Daleri Rileda]

03:35 PM on 12/04/2010

The only thing they have left is a retaining wall for crying out loud.

[hamba2han]

03:34 AM on 12/05/2010

All the Jews have left is very likely the retaining wall of Fort Antonia i.e. one of the most hated edifices in Jewish history.

There is absolutely NOTHING which supports their claim that the Wall was part of Herod's Temple, no evidence from Biblical accounts, no evidence from all of their extensive archeological excavations over the past 40 years or so and no evidence from eye-witness reports at the time the Temple was destroyed by the Romans as I have explained in an earlier post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/hamba2han/palestinians-remove-claim_n_791298_69460051.html

I would think that the Palestinians are doing the Jews a huge favour by pointing out to them that they are very likely praying at the retaining wall of Fort Antonia and this certainly means that the sensible and logical thing for Jews to do would be to stop this practice of praying at the remnant of such a hated edifice in their history until they know for sure the true history and religious significance of the Western Wall.

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

04:58 PM on 12/04/2010

And it is Arab's version of history against the rest of the world; exclusive of leftists, far right, Palestinians and Islamists.

What does that tell you?

[JayPhilosopher]

06:10 PM on 12/04/2010

Personally, I think venerating a wall is crazy whether crazy fundamentalist Arabs or crazy fundamentalist Jews do it. Secular governments should not be involved in supporting crazy religious fundamentalism of any type.
The people who designed and built the wall were probably Romans under the direction of Herod the Great, a Roman administrator. Probably, native citizens of Rome, if they can trace their heritage back to the ancient city of Rome probably have the best claim on the wall.
If people are going to fight each other over it, blowing it up would probably be the best solution.

[ThoughtThrough]

09:14 PM on 12/04/2010

I know that the history of the minority will always be subverted by the majority.
So in a case like you mention, it’s very likely that there is some reason to consider their claim. Whether that reason is simple human consideration, or its hard evidence that has been subverted, it’s always worth looking at.

"Arab's version of history against the rest of the world"
A statement like that assumes that an "arab" will manipulate the truth, or conjure false evidence in order to write history, while non arabs never do those things.
if you have some specific reason to dispute this specific claim, then why dont you give it,
rather than coming to a conclusion based on race. I would expect that from someone who likes to call people chauvinistic, prejiduce bigots.

[Mark Webber]

08:37 AM on 12/04/2010

I wonder if the US haven't got enough headaches and still meddling in arguments between neanderthals. Abrahem sons and the city of peace illu .sion still lives on.

[MichaelHulmes]

08:33 AM on 12/04/2010

When we see measurements in scripture it is pointing to time periods. An example would be the false image king Nebuchadnezzar erected in Daniel 3.
The image Nebuchadnezzar erected was 60 cubits high and 6 cubits wide.
1 cubit = 20 inches
60 x 20 = 1200 inches high and 6 x 20 = 120 inches wide.
Now cube it and you get 144,000 square inches. A time stamp. Revelation 14
In prophecy 1 year = 1 day = 24 hours
6000 years brings you to the year 2000 AD When the truth would begin to be preached.
6000 prophetic days x 24 hours = 144,000 hours
The time of the gentiles is up. What is the true Gospel?
1 Corinthians 15:22 - "As in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive."
Let no false prophet turn that bread into a stone.

[MichaelHulmes]

08:32 AM on 12/04/2010

What people haven't figured out yet, is the physical temple is symbolic of the spiritual temple. Revelation 11 talks about two witnesses, the old covenant and the new covenant, the inner court and the outer court. What was given to the gentiles? The outer court or new covenant. The covenant is for everyone but it was given to the gentiles to bring to the world, and the gentiles have defiled it, and are treading it under foot for a certain time period. In other words they have the gospel wrong. Example of bad math: "Great news everyone!! Many will be lost and suffer alive in hell for eternity!!" Who could this doctrine possibly be good news to?

The abomination of desolation can be found in Daniel 3:1-6

[ThoughtThrough]

09:30 PM on 12/04/2010

wow,
will you take time to come and decipher the paterns in my carpet for me next
lol
I know its trying to tell me something!
but what!?

[MichaelHulmes]

10:26 PM on 12/04/2010

So what is it that you claim to have "Thought Through?" You are either one of two things with your mouth. A builder or a destroyer. A honey bee or a locust. Think it through.

[Lisa Spurgeon Bullock]

07:18 AM on 12/04/2010

Seriously the entire argument is moot since there is no God anyway. We will not reach peace here on Earth until the human race evolves to the point everyone understands the science and facts of our existence. Luckily we have extremely intelligent physicists working on the answer. My hope is that one day everyone can put aside the petty arguments that religion entail and live as a peaceful society.

[ArchieBunker II]

08:02 AM on 12/04/2010

until the human race evolves.... lol Remember its puff puff pass!

[Daleri Rileda]

08:27 AM on 12/04/2010

You really do not know what the issues are.

Objects in nature are not able to do anything so they also do not order themselves.

Preexisting directives need preexisting proteins that need the preexisting directives that make the proteins that hold the billions of digits of directives that make the proteins.

There is no magic anywhere in nature that is able to go from no intelligence to having intelligence.

They don't teach anything real in schools but they will teach baseless imagination and fantasy and then they wonder why we have so many problems.

[phute]

12:22 PM on 12/04/2010

Judging by your posts you have bought wholesale into the fantasy number.
Don't tell others what the score is when you offer no proof to back up your assertions.

[jtthomas240]

12:39 PM on 12/04/2010

You think they don't teach anything real in schools because your inane ramblings aren't converted into curriculum?

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

04:47 AM on 12/04/2010

Notice that we just had an election? Notice that not one politician was elected on a platform of attacking Israel? In fact not even one campaigned on that issue! No one attempted to demonize or delegitimize the Jewish homeland like YOU did.

That tells me that mainstream Americans are not interested in your extremist views. In other words that is YOUR proof that your views ARE extremist, unwelcome and h_ateful.

Further proof: Let's see if it is still here a day from now. Flagged

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

04:31 PM on 12/04/2010

see, couple hours later it is gone....

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

04:48 AM on 12/04/2010

Notice that we just had an election? Notice that not one politician was elected on a platform of attacking Israel? In fact not even one campaigned on that issue! No one attempted to demonize or delegitimi­ze the J_ewish homeland like YOU did.

That tells me that mainstream Americans are not interested in such extremist views. In other words that is YOUR proof that your views ARE extremist, unwelcome and h_ateful.

Further proof: Let's see if it is still here a day from now. F l a g g e d

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

04:51 AM on 12/04/2010

If you had some evidence I am certain you would have posted it. read my post above. The same applies to you

[Kramerica-Industries]

11:48 AM on 12/04/2010

Those dirty little secrets were so well hidden you are the only person in the world to hear about them.

[StopFraudEsq]

03:10 AM on 12/04/2010

I'm so glad this is what we spend our time on.

Managing Israel. nuts

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

02:33 AM on 12/04/2010

pdferguson posted:
"So, did J_esus drive a DeLorean at exactly 88 MPH and go back in time? Is that how he did it? Call Hollywood, I smell a remake!"

~
Your trite and disparaging remark actually may hold a kernel of truth. The latest in physics and quantum science informs us that an event CAN reach back into the past and create justification for its existence.

Check out the Multi-verse or M-theory for another approach to the same question (this universe is merely one bubble in an ocean of bubbles, a quantum froth). The Giant Hadron Collider in Europe is reving up unheard of energies and has just proven the existence of ANTIMATTER, by actually creating some.

They hope to prove the Multiverse theory by 2012 when full blast energies will be used.

So, what does this mean? A devastating event (lets say Armageddon) in one of the universes in the multiverse could conceivably REACH BACK and justify its existence in many parallel universes screaming towards that general point in time/space.

Therefore the weird coincidence of THREE powerful world world monotheisms sharing the same apocalyptic fantasies of a devastating earth-destroying battle to once and for all decide the true faith, "MAY BE" influenced by this event having ALREADY taken place in a future "parallel universe."

Go on and laugh, but I suggest you find out more about our latest understanding of physics, reality and the universe (multiverse).

[Tlaltecuhtli02]

02:34 AM on 12/04/2010

For a primer, try this letter written to a vet who asked if the universe took his son away as karmic debt for his having kllled over a hundred people as the door g_unner of a helicopter in Viet Nam.

http://coyotetemple.blogspot.com/

[pdferguson]

12:17 PM on 12/04/2010

Okay, I'll refrain from laughing (barely), but let me point out that your theory misses one critical point. The three world monotheisms are all derived from the same mythology, so it's no wonder they all share certain events. Apocalypses are easy to understand and inspire awe in people. That's why they're popular in literature, films, and religion.

That's a MUCH simpler explanation that an Armageddon in some parallel or future universe (are these different?) spilling over into our universe and causing all sorts of bizarre and fantastic Ghostbuster-ish events. That just sounds like, well, an idea for a film--or a new religion!

[Daleri Rileda]

03:58 PM on 12/04/2010

Yeah, God would never destroy the entire earth... would He?

Are you naive?

It happened before and it will happen again.

How about this new idea for something to believe? Our Creator was born of a woman and He took the punishment that we deserve so us sinners could live because no one else could.

[Daleri Rileda]

03:59 PM on 12/04/2010

...no one else could do anything for us.