Muslims Ransacking Israel's Temple Mount
Muslims Ransacking Israel’s Temple Mount
Two thousand years ago, Roman Legions pillaged and burned Israel’s Second Temple, turning the hilltop on which it once stood into a desolate heap. As they wandered the planet, looking for a place to find rest for their feet, hounded and harried everywhere by anti-Semitic Christians and others, the descendants of the exiled Jews prayed for and looked toward their return to the Temple Mount and the rebuilding of the house of worship to their God.
It is their holiest site—the place where God’s glory once shone visibly for the entire nation to see, and the place from which their Messiah is prophesied to reign. And yet, despite this purported highest importance to their nation, Israel’s government is apparently unmoved by reports of ongoing and unrestrained destruction of the site and its priceless remains at the hands of the Palestinian Islamic Waqf.
In an exclusive report Monday [September 3], WorldNetDaily [WND] revealed that the Waqf—or Islamic Trust—has been caught “red-handed†destroying Temple-era antiquities, including parts of what may well be a wall from the Second Temple. The destruction is being wrought as the Arabs blast trenches in which to lay new electrical wiring for their mosques and other Muslim-controlled structures.
Whereas Muslims throughout the Middle East and around the world have rioted and protested violently any plans by Israel to carry out excavations or repair work anywhere near the Temple Mount, Israel’s Jews are conspicuous by their silence and almost total lack of interest in what the Muslims are doing to their holy of holies.
One of the few Israelis to register their shock and anger is Eilat Mazar, considered one of the most prominent Temple Mount archaeologists. WND reports Mazar analyzed a photo showing damaged stone elements and said they “might be part of a Jewish Temple wall Israeli archaeologists charge the Waqf found and has been attempting to destroy.â€
“It certainly looks like Second Temple antiquity and could very well be part of a Second Temple courtyard wall,†Mazar said. If authenticated, said WND, the wall would be one of the most important Temple Mount archaeological discoveries in recent history. Mazar said she would need to examine the stone in the photo to certify it.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reportedly gave the Waqf permission to use earth-moving gear to dig a long, deep trench across the top of the mount. Israeli police are protecting the diggers and, in fact, helping oversee the destruction of the most important piece of their national heritage. Archaeologists like Mazar are prevented from inspecting how the work is being done.
(By Stan Goodenough, Jerusalem Newswire, September 3, 2007)
Editor’s Note: Listen to our interview with archaeologist Dr. Gabi Bakkai. Go to our Web site www.bridgesforpeace.com and click on BFP Israel Mosaic Radio’s segment “Temple Mount Drama†on the left.
Prayer Focus
Pray that the Israeli authorities will act to protect the sacred site.
Scripture
“And Jesus [Yeshua] walked in the temple, in Solomo’s Porch†(John 10:23).
Muslims Ransacking Israel’s Temple Mount
Two thousand years ago, Roman Legions pillaged and burned Israel’s Second Temple, turning the hilltop on which it once stood into a desolate heap. As they wandered the planet, looking for a place to find rest for their feet, hounded and harried everywhere by anti-Semitic Christians and others, the descendants of the exiled Jews prayed for and looked toward their return to the Temple Mount and the rebuilding of the house of worship to their God.
It is their holiest site—the place where God’s glory once shone visibly for the entire nation to see, and the place from which their Messiah is prophesied to reign. And yet, despite this purported highest importance to their nation, Israel’s government is apparently unmoved by reports of ongoing and unrestrained destruction of the site and its priceless remains at the hands of the Palestinian Islamic Waqf.
In an exclusive report Monday [September 3], WorldNetDaily [WND] revealed that the Waqf—or Islamic Trust—has been caught “red-handed†destroying Temple-era antiquities, including parts of what may well be a wall from the Second Temple. The destruction is being wrought as the Arabs blast trenches in which to lay new electrical wiring for their mosques and other Muslim-controlled structures.
Whereas Muslims throughout the Middle East and around the world have rioted and protested violently any plans by Israel to carry out excavations or repair work anywhere near the Temple Mount, Israel’s Jews are conspicuous by their silence and almost total lack of interest in what the Muslims are doing to their holy of holies.
One of the few Israelis to register their shock and anger is Eilat Mazar, considered one of the most prominent Temple Mount archaeologists. WND reports Mazar analyzed a photo showing damaged stone elements and said they “might be part of a Jewish Temple wall Israeli archaeologists charge the Waqf found and has been attempting to destroy.â€
“It certainly looks like Second Temple antiquity and could very well be part of a Second Temple courtyard wall,†Mazar said. If authenticated, said WND, the wall would be one of the most important Temple Mount archaeological discoveries in recent history. Mazar said she would need to examine the stone in the photo to certify it.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reportedly gave the Waqf permission to use earth-moving gear to dig a long, deep trench across the top of the mount. Israeli police are protecting the diggers and, in fact, helping oversee the destruction of the most important piece of their national heritage. Archaeologists like Mazar are prevented from inspecting how the work is being done.
(By Stan Goodenough, Jerusalem Newswire, September 3, 2007)
Editor’s Note: Listen to our interview with archaeologist Dr. Gabi Bakkai. Go to our Web site www.bridgesforpeace.com and click on BFP Israel Mosaic Radio’s segment “Temple Mount Drama†on the left.
Prayer Focus
Pray that the Israeli authorities will act to protect the sacred site.
Scripture
“And Jesus [Yeshua] walked in the temple, in Solomo’s Porch†(John 10:23).
