Archeological destruction
(June 29) - Paeans of devotion to
Jerusalem are so common in Israeli politics that they have lost all meaning.
This is perhaps the only explanation for Prime Minister Ehud Barak's complicity
in the wanton disregard of archeological norms regarding Israel's most holy and
significant ancient site, the Temple Mount.
When arguing for the transfer of
Abu Dis, the Arab neighborhood on Jerusalem's outskirts, to full Palestinian
control, Barak somewhat glibly pointed out that Jews had not prayed to return
to Abu Dis for the past two millennia. The same cannot be said of the Temple
Mount, site of the First and Second Temple, and the Western Wall which is today
the holiest site in the world to the Jewish people.
For the past 33 years, since
Mordechai (Motta) Gur emotionally declared "the Temple Mount is in our
hands," Israel has in fact delegated almost all authority over the Temple
Mount to the Moslem Wakf. The reason for this was to scrupulously uphold
Israel's commitment to respect each religion's authority over its own holy
places. Accordingly, Israel distilled its entire connection to the site that
was Judaism's crucible into one peripheral spot, the Western Wall, leaving the
actual site where the Temples stood to the Moslem shrines and mosques that were
subsequently built there.
In response to its possibly
unparalleled act of enlightened restraint, Israel has not only received little
recognition, but is denied a modicum of reciprocity. Incredibly, the Moslem
Wakf denies any Jewish connection to the site where tradition holds that
Abraham almost sacrificed his son Isaac, King David established his capital,
and his son Solomon built the First Temple. Just to make sure, the Wakf has
prevented archeologists from plumbing one of the world's most prominent ancient
treasures for its secrets.
Israel has accepted its inability
to actively explore the Temple Mount, including a tantalizing passageway in the
structure's western side that the Wakf sealed with concrete soon after its
discovery. It is one thing, however, to prevent exploration and quite another
to bulldoze through ancient structures without any archeological supervision.
Last November, the Wakf opened what
it called an "emergency exit" to the mosque it had built in the
chambers under the Temple Mount surface known as Solomon's Stables. By now this
exit has expanded into a gaping hole 2000 square meters in area and up to 12
meters deep. The "exit," it seems, will become a monumental entrance
area to the mosque. Thousands of tons of fill from the site, subsequently found
by archeologists to contain First and Second Temple artifacts , were
unceremoniously dumped into the Kidron Valley.
Now, somewhat belatedly, a public
effort within Israel has galvanized to demand a stop to the construction and
destruction on the Mount. An urgent open letter sent to the prime minister this
month warns that "a serious act of irreparable archeological vandalism and
destruction is being carried out without archeological supervision, while
abrogating the Antiquities Law and Antiquities Authority remains
inactive." This public effort is notable for its political diversity - the
open letter was signed by former mayor Teddy Kollek and current mayor Ehud
Olmert, authors Amos Oz and Haim Gouri, and by 82 MKs ranging from Meretz to
Shas and Likud. Indeed, it should not be surprising that Israelis of all
stripes are appalled that the law requiring almost every road and building site
to submit to archeological supervision is brazenly suspended on the Temple
Mount, potentially one of the richest archeological sites in the world.
Responding to the public pressure
and constant bustle of unknown construction activity on the Temple Mount, Barak
finally met yesterday with the relevant authorities to decide what to do. In an
Orwellian statement released after the meeting, the Prime Minister's Office
declared that Barak remained committed to "preserving the status quo and
preventing archeological damage." National Security Adviser Danny Yatom
later explained that Barak's idea of "status quo" was not to prevent
the Wakf from continuing its unsupervised construction.
Such obfuscation, accompanied by an
illegal attempt to prevent the press from visiting the area, is unacceptable.
The claim that "security concerns" require Israeli acquiescence is
widely, if unofficially, disputed by former and current security authorities,
who agree with public demands to stop the movement of construction equipment
and materials in and out of the Temple Mount.
The current stage
of the peace process, far from being an excuse for inaction, increases the
urgency of asserting Israel's right and duty to prevent archeological
atrocities. The Wakf's history of outrageous disregard for the archeological
patrimony of all three faiths to whom the Mount is holy is reason enough not to
perpetuate its current degree of authority in the context of a final-status
agreement. If Israel is considering enshrining the Wakf's authority by
agreement, now is the time to enforce international standards of preservation
and respect for ancient sites. If Israel does not exert its authority when it
nominally has the power and responsibility to do so, it will hardly be in a
position to demand that others do so in the future.