Digs, lies and the Mugrabi bridge

[Behind the Aegis]

The people who came up with the plan to build the Mugrabi bridge may soon find out that the unfounded hysterical Muslim campaign "to rescue the endangered al-Aqsa Mosque" is the least of their problems.

Shortcuts in plans sometimes turn out to be very expensive and may even prolong the process. The plan to build the new Mugrabi bridge should have been presented to the public properly, as part of a detailed urban plan, which allows for reservations and changes to be submitted. This is required by law as well as by reason. After all, this is a controversial, significant change of landscape in a unique spot facing the Temple Mount and its walls. Even those who support the plan say it is the lesser evil. Clearly the plan would never have materialized had the Mugrabi ramp not collapsed. But it is not at all clear whether the option of renovating the old ramp had been considered with sufficient thought and creativity.

Still, one good thing did happen. The Mugrabi bridge plan exposes the great Muslim denial - the denial of the Jewish bond to Jerusalem, the Temple Mount and the Temple. Dr. Yitzhak Reiter described the whole story in his study, From Jerusalem to Mecca and Back - a must for anyone wishing to understand the roots of Muslim behavior, even in the Mugrabi bridge affair - but his work remained, regrettably, an academic study, failing to prompt an appropriate public relations campaign on Israel's part. Now the public is receiving another demonstration.

Who among us knows, for example, that the al-Aqsa Mosque, which according to contemporary studies was built some 1,400 years ago, is now claimed to have been built at the time of the world's creation, during the days of Adam or Abraham? And who is aware of the fact that increasing numbers of Muslim academics and religious leaders claim it existed even before Jesus and Moses and that Islam preceded Judaism in Jerusalem?


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[calzone]

1. Interesting exercise in...digs and lies

....In that opinion piece. No surprise it generated sympathetic, like-thinking replies such as this....

"It is therefore easy to understand why the Muslims are so afraid of archaeological digs, not only on the Temple Mount itself but also around it, although these digs also shed light on Jerusalem's Muslim history. Muslims fear these excavations, not because they physically endanger al-Aqsa's foundations, but because they undermine the tissue of lies proclaiming that the Jews have no valid historical roots in the city and its holy sites.

Their whole `religion` is a bundle of lies and muslims are only happy when they are lying or murdering their children.

When people call mohammed a paedophile they are wrong. He couldn`t have been one because he never existed."

There are numerous others just like that.

It did prompt me to do a little research tho'.
As for Muslims declaring that the mosque pre-dated the temple, none of many sites I visited did that, they stated facts. Here's 2 examples from many:

http://www.islamicarchitecture.org/architecture/alaqsamosque.html

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/archive/archive?ArchiveId=5380

Islamic anger about the undermining and tunneling under the Al Aqsa mosque might be the result of a long history by the Israelis to damage and attack the mosque, from what I've read.

"Continuous and sustained deep digging under the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Holy Sanctuary as a whole-- structures which are 14 centuries old-- began immediately after the Zionist occupation of the Holy City, in addition to the demolition of hundreds of buildings in the area adjacent to it. These deep diggings have reached such depths that entire structures are threatened with collapse.
On 21 August, 1969 the Zionists carried out a plot of arson to set the entire Al Aqsa Mosque on fire. The arsonist, Michael Rohan, a Zionist Australian, was declared deranged-- not unlike the person in question today-- and sent to Australia.
On 9 May 1980, 120 kilos of high explosives, scores of bombs, wires and other explosive contraptions were accidentally discovered a mere few minutes away from the time of detonation on the roof of a Jewish school in the Old City, 150 yards away from the target. The Gush Emunim terrorist movement was behind the plan, which aimed at blowing up the Al Aqsa Mosque and other historical buildings. The day was a Friday and tens of thousands of worshipers might have been killed or maimed if that arsenal of explosives had not been accidentally discovered two minutes before explosion.
Repeated attempts by Israeli groups to force their way into mosques of the holy sanctuary, leading to numerous clashes.
Last year, the Israeli Gush Emunim started digging a tunnel leading to the Dome of the Rock. The attempt was discovered and foiled by the civilian inhabitants.
7 April, 1982-- that is, three days before the Easter Sunday massacre-- explosive charges placed by (Gush Emunim) were discovered at the entrance to the Al Aqsa Mosque and dismantled. Beside the charges were pamphlets threatening to blow up the Al Aqsa Mosque and physically liquidate the religious dignitaries. The threats were written in broken Arabic and issued from the Kiryat Arba illegal settlement overlooking the City of Al-Khalil (Hebron)."

http://www.jerusalemites.org/crimes/crimes_against_islam/3.htm

Who are the Gush Emunim?

"Gush Emunim beliefs are based heavily on the teachings of Rabbi Abraham Kook and his son, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook. The two rabbis taught that secular Zionists, through their conquests of Eretz Israel, had unwittingly brought about the beginning of the "messianic age", which would end in the coming of the Jewish messiah. Gush Emunim supporters believe that the coming of the messiah can be hastened through Jewish settlement on land they believe God has allotted to the Jewish people as outlined in the Hebrew Bible."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gush_Emunim

Gee, it's almost a pattern.

"Michael Dennis Rohan claimed that he had attempted to burn down the mosque after reading an editorial by Herbert W. Armstrong in the June 1967 edition of The Plain Truth magazine. Millions of copies of that monthly publication were distributed free of charge every year by the Radio Church of God which has changed its name to the Worldwide Church of God.'

Mr. Armstrong categorically denied that Rohan was ever a member or had any connection to his church. Later.....

"He later become involved with the Israeli government in archaeological digs in the area of the Temple Mount."

<<snip>>

"On August 28, 1969 a complaint was submitted to the United Nations Security Council by twenty-four Muslim countries in response to the Al Aqsa arson attempt. Mohammad El Farra of Jordan stated:

Today, my delegation joins the 24 other members, representing 750 million adherents of the Muslim faith, which requested a meeting to consider another, more serious tragedy, namely of Al Aqsa Mosque, and the fire which severely damaged that historic Holy Place on the morning of 21 August 1969. The Israeli authorities introduced more than one explanation for the start of the fire and at last charged an Australian with the arson. According to news that originated from Israel sources, the Australian suspect is a friend of Israel who was brought by the Jewish Agency to work for Israel.

The Jewish Agency arranged for the Australian to work in a Kibbutz for some months, so that he could learn the Hebrew language and acquire more of the Zionist teaching. The report published in the Jerusalem Post - an Israeli semi-official newspaper-of 25 August 1969 concerning the life of this Australian in the Kibbutz and his dreams of building Solomon’s temple casts doubt on the case and adds to the fears and worries of the Muslims about their holy shrines; it also throws light on who is the criminal and who is the accomplice.

We have not forgotten statements in the early days of the 5 June 1967 Israeli occupation about the future of Jerusalem, nor have we forgotten the report of Menahem Borsh, which was published in Yediot Aharanot of 18 August, 1969, only three days before the burning of the Mosque, emphasizing that the Temple would be built anew in the same spot ... on Thursday, 21 August 1969."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Dennis_Rohan

"Clandestine digging has endangered many structures including the partial collapse of the Rabat al-Kurd building and cracks in the walls of al-Juwhariya School. In March 1983, the entrance to the Waqf caved in. Encroachment on the site has never abated. On Aug. 21, 1985, Israeli police allowed Jews to pray on al-Haram. One year later, rabbis dedicated to asserting Jewish sovereignty over what they call the Temple Mount issued orders to build a synagogue on the site. In 1990, fanatic Jews announced plans to insert a cornerstone in the Islamic walls for the construction of the third temple. Riots broke out in which 17 unarmed Muslims were killed and hundreds more were machine-gunned by Israeli police. In July 1995, Israel’s high court of justice decreed that Jews can pray on al-Haram.

“The Israelis have tried to make the Muslims look like unreasonable people who are rioting because of a tunnel,” Dr. Hathout concluded. “The tunnel was the final link in a long chain of efforts to compromise the symbol of an Islamic presence on the land. Muslims do not have a shrine mentality. It is not the dome, the rock or the mosque, but if they monopolize our history and our geography, it is the surrender of Muslim civilization to the Zionists.”

http://www.wrmea.com/backissues/1196/9611062.htm

I can corroborate that the Muslims don't have a shrine mentality. The Koran discourages idolatry, and images of the prophet are virtually not to be found. Mohammed made it clear that he was not to be worshipped or idolized, all glory belonged to Allah...to the extant that his final resting place was kept secret, so attention would not be drawn away from the Koran and Allah.
The final paragraph above sums up the present unrest very nicely IMO, even tho' the author of the original opinion piece would apparently like to smear and marginalize all Muslims. Just portray all Muslims & Palestinians as ignorant, reactionary, lying lunatics, that seems to be his M.O..