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Safeguarding Jerusalem

May 29,2014 - Last updated at May 29,2014

Israel is sparing no effort to Judaise Jerusalem. As a result, the city is losing its Muslim and Christian character fast, as well as much of its Muslim and Christian population.

To counter this, and other imminent dangers, and rescue the city, there is need for sustained Muslim-Christian efforts.

Jerusalem is a city for all the children of Abrahamic faiths: Muslims, Christians and Jews. When it was under Muslim, Arab and then Jordanian rule, all faiths were equally respected and all were given easy, unhindered access to their places of worship.

When the city fell under Israeli occupation, by contrast, Israel took measures and made plans to de-Islamise and de-Christianise the city.

Today, Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem — including Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock — are in imminent danger due to the subversive practices of Israeli extremists, Israeli officials and the Israeli government.

The practices of the so-called Israeli “price-tag” terrorist group, and the digs under and around all Al Haram Al Sharif area are just two examples of this physical threat.

Additionally, both Christian and Muslim worshippers are systematically declined easy access to their places of worship.

The root problem is the basic, convenient, premise which Israel built its existence in occupied Palestinian territories, a premise to which even the secularist and atheist Zionists  ironically subscribe:  that Palestine is promised to the Israelis — and the Israelis alone — by God.

The premise is catastrophically problematic not only because it is a convenient way of usurping someone else’s land and depriving them of rights, but also because it runs counter to the two basic premises of civility that Israel flagrantly ignores: tolerance and coexistence.

What aggravates Jerusalem’s problem further, and makes it an easy target for the Israelis, is the weakness of the support (relative to what Israel does) given to it by both Muslims and Christians. There is much talk and little action.

Pope Francis’ recent visit to the area, which triggered admirable feelings of solidarity between Christians and Muslims and consensus on the need to protect Jerusalem, gives hope that Jerusalem and the Jerusalemites are not left in the lurch.

And one can derive the same sense of hope from the recent gathering of leaders of the world Orthodox churches in Jordan, during which the cause of Jerusalem was highlighted and from the efforts of the Jordanian, Palestinian and some Arab governments, as well as the good work of some international organisations.

Still, more effort, more ideas and plans are needed to enable Jerusalem and the Jerusalemites to weather the current nasty circumstances.

The fact that the Pope came and, in front of the whole world (including the Israelis), stood and prayed at the Baptism Site, at the River Jordan, at Israel’s apartheid wall, etc., is a huge political statement.

Two things, however, need to be stressed here.

The first is that the Pope’s visit must be capitalised on for sustained subsequent action. In particular, there is urgent need for religious leaders of all ranks and from all parts of the globe to visit Jerusalem, show solidarity with it, and encourage pilgrims to visit it regularly and continuously.

One is talking primarily here about Muslim and Christian religious leaders. But there are also Jewish religious leaders who oppose Zionist and Israeli subversive practices in Jerusalem who should be brought on board.

One message should be made loud and clear in this context by these religious leaders: boycotting Israel is one thing, and boycotting Jerusalem is quite another. The latter is disastrous to Muslim and Christian Jerusalem.

One hopes to see as many faithful pilgrims visiting Jerusalem as those visiting Mecca and the Vatican.

I am sure that those entrusted with following up on the Pope’s successful visit and all the organisations in support of Jerusalem realise all of this and more.

The second is logistic, concrete, material and financial support.

Words alone and symbolic gestures are not enough. Jerusalem is under occupation and is subject to ethnic cleansing as far as the Christian and Muslim inhabitants are concerned.

Additionally, Israel and Zionist organisations from all over the globe are inundating Jerusalem with many specific plans and huge funds for the purpose of Judaisation.

Christian and Muslim supporters of Jerusalem need to match the Israeli support if the Christian and Muslim Jerusalem is to be rescued.

Jerusalem cries for more moral and material support. And it is only with concrete, sustained steps on these two fronts that this Holy City will be able to survive as a city of tolerance and coexistence. 

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