First: “the Jews” did not conquer anything in modern times. You’re probably thinking of Israel. “The Jews” are a group that includes Jewish shoe salesmen in New York, Jewish models in Paris, Jewish schoolboys in Chile, and so on. None of them had anything to do with al-Aqsa.,
Second: Israel did not conquer the
Mosque of al-Aqsa per se. Israel was attacked from the West Bank (by Jordan),
before and during the 1967 war, and in response, Israel fought for, took
control of, and held the West Bank. This included the Old City of Jerusalem,
which does indeed contain the Mosque of al-Aqsa. (It also contains the Dome of
the Rock, the Western Wall, a great many ancient churches, and much, much more.
It also contained, in 1967, the ruins of over 50 Jewish synagogues that had
been dynamited to the ground by the Jordanians.)
When Israel took possession of
the Temple Mount in 1967, it could have done anything it wanted. One might even
have understood, in a way, if the Israelis had seen the ruins of their ancient
synagogues in Jerusalem and chosen, in response, to take vengeance on other
holy places.
But Israel did no such thing.
Israel immediately put the Muslim holy places, notably the Mosque of al-Aqsa
and the Dome of the Rock, under the official control of the Jordanian Waqf
religious guardians. They remain in charge, to this day.
Israel showed then, and continues
to show today, a remarkable respect for the holy places of all religions.
In the late 1980s, the Dome of
the Rock was in serious disrepair; Israel repaired and restored it, to the
glory you can see today. Millions of Muslims visit there every year. (Jews
do not visit; did you know that? Israel makes sure of that, to keep
the peace.)
So if you’re concerned about the
safety and sanctity of al-Aqsa (and other Muslim holy places in Jerusalem),
don’t worry. Israel, and the Waqf authorities, are taking very good care of
them.
No comments:
Post a Comment