Hamas Cited Clashes in Jerusalem

I was appalled to read this information about what has just happened in one of the most important places in Jerusalem. It's the first place I visited upon reaching Jerusalem back in 1980.

Hundreds of young Palestinians threw rocks at Jews who were praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Friday, March 5th. Israel's police had to evacuate the worshippers. Violence was so bad that the police had to use tear gas and stun grenades to stop the stone-throwers. Then, they had to enter the Temple Mount compound to quell things. 18 policemen and 13 Palestinians were injured in the melee.

Hamas instigated the clashes. The stone-throwers were waving Hamas flags at the scene. They're backed by Iran. Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas leader in Gaza, urged Palestinians last week to a new intifada because Israel decided to include two holy sites in the West Bank as part of a plan to preserve Israel's national heritage and religious sites. They weren't going to keep Palestinians away from these sites, just did this to be able to fund upkeep. The Palestinians and Jordanians have failed to protect our holy sites there.

The Palestinians reacted with saying: "Jerusalem is ours, the land is ours, and God is with us. We will not accept these decisions and they will no ramifications".

Mitchell from the USA arrives there on the March 6th in the evening in order to restart negotiations between Israel and the PA. Too bad that he can't stick around for a month or two and see what it's like to live with Hamas in the area.

Resource: The Israel Project-fact sheet: Palestinians fail to protect Jewish sacred places press@theisraelproject.org