Peace Disruption: Incursion, Insurrection, Intifada

TRANSCEND MEMBERS, 9 Jan 2023

Prof Hoosen Vawda – TRANSCEND Media Service

“The 13^1/2-minute incursion that will change the Middle East forever.”[1]

On Thursday, 30^th December 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel took office, again as the reappointed Israeli Prime Minister.  He was issued with a deadline to form a coalition government and he promptly proceeded to include the ultra-ring wing politicians as members of his cabinet. Amongst them is a previously convicted extreme right-wing politician, Itamar Ben Givr. This publication discusses the provocative incursion of newly appointed Israeli National Security Minister, from the ultra-right wing, Itamar Ben-Gvir of the previously forbidden Al Aqsa compound in Jerusalem on Tuesday, 03^rd January 2023, raising tensions with Palestinians, days after an ultra-right-wing government was sworn in.  This incursion by Ben Givr was executed with the full knowledge and agreement of Prime Minister Netanhayu, who stated that the “staus quo would not be changed by this premeditated , highly provocative intrusion during which Ben-Gvir was surrounded by heavy security, after Palestinian warnings that his presence at the site would cause “an explosion”, Israel’s public broadcaster Kan reported, into the third holiest Islamic Religious Site.  While the incursion lasted just 13^1/2 minutes, early on Tuesday, 03^rd January 2023, the damage this provocation has caused to the Palestinian cause for freedom from the tyrannical, Israeli occupation of the West Bank, will definitely cause widespread political, religious, as well as cultural repercussions with total disruption of peace, globally and having an enormous impact on regional security.

A similar incursion into the hallowed precincts of the Islamic Al Aqsa Mosque Complex, was also executed in a premeditated manner by , Ariel Sharon , also known by his diminutive Arik, born Ariel Scheinermann on 26^th February 1928 and demised on 11^th January 2014, was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11^th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. However, On 28^th September, 2000, an incursion into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound by Ariel Sharon, then leader of the opposition and head of the Israeli right wing, was the event that triggered the second intifada, the Palestinian uprising. [2] According to  Richard Kreitner,[3], [4]“A new sense may actually be dawning that only a mass movement against Israeli apartheid, similar to South Africa’s, will work.”

In a spiteful display of resolve, at the time, the leader of the Israeli political opposition, Ariel Sharon, toured the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, in Jerusalem, surrounded by several hundred, and perhaps more than a thousand, armed riot police. The visit had the desired effect: After Sharon left the compound, Palestinian rioters began hurling stones and other projectiles in the direction of Jewish worshipers at the Western Wall. Rarely has it been more accurately said that hell broke loose of its restraints. At the end of October 2000, Edward Said[6] , a Palestinian-American professor of literature at Columbia University, a public intellectual, and a founder of the academic field of postcolonial studies, wrote a piece for The Nation surveying the situation.[7]   “Misreported and flawed from the start, the Oslo peace process has entered its terminal phase of violent confrontation, disproportionately massive Israeli repression, widespread Palestinian rebellion and great loss of life, mainly Palestinian. Ariel Sharon’s September 28 visit, (as described, but it was an unauthorized one, actually an incursion) to Haram al Sharif could not have occurred without Prime Minister Ehud Barak’s concurrence; how else could Sharon have appeared there with at least a thousand soldiers guarding him? Barak’s approval rating rose from 20 to 50 percent after the visit  (as he described it, but it was also an incursion), and the stage seems set for a national unity government ready to be still more violent and repressive.…”[8]

An alternative peace plan and leadership is slowly emerging among leading Israeli, West Bank, Gaza and diaspora Palestinians, a thousand of whom have signed a set of declarations that have great popular support: no return to the Oslo framework; no compromise on the original UN Resolutions (242, 338 and 194) on the basis of which the Madrid Conference was convened in 1991; removal of all settlements and military roads; evacuation of all the territories annexed or occupied in 1967; boycott of Israeli goods and services. A new sense may actually be dawning that only a mass movement against Israeli apartheid (similar to South Africa’s) will work. Certainly, it is wrong for Barak and Albright to hold Arafat responsible for what he no longer fully controls. Rather than dismiss the new framework being proposed, Israel’s supporters would be wise to remember that the question of Palestine concerns an entire people, not an aging and discredited leader. Besides, peace in Palestine-Israel can be made only between equals once the military occupation has ended. No Palestinian, not even Arafat, can really accept anything less.[9]

At the risk of aggravating tensions, Israel’s new national security minister Ben Givr, generated a similarly provocative and symbolic incursion, once again, the epicenter of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Islam’s third holiest site and Judaism’s most sacred site, by entering the site nearly 23 years later.

The incursion, euphemistically described on internet as well as by international media, including BBC, as a “visit”, has resulted in an international wave of condemnation of the new Israeli government.  The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned it as “an unprecedented provocation”.  The US said that any unilateral action that jeopardises the status quo of Jerusalem holy sites was unacceptable adding that, “The United States stands firmly for the preservation of the status quo with respect to the holy sites in Jerusalem.”  Appearing to respond to a cascade of condemnation from governments across the region and beyond, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his government was in favour of “strictly keeping the status quo,” at the holy site, whereby Jordan remains the custodian and only Muslims are allowed to worship there, while other faiths are allowed only to visit.

The Israeli ministerial incursion will result in violence and put Israel at odds with Jordan, which denounced the visit of the minister to the site, with authorities saying they “condemned” his “storming” of Al Aqsa. The UAE was among several Gulf countries to respond to the incursion. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation called on Israel to “assume responsibility for reducing escalation and instability in the region”. The ministry also “reiterated its firm position on the need to provide full protection for Al Aqsa Mosque and halt serious and provocative violations taking place there”. Saudi Arabia, which normally subscribes to the United States foreign policy of supporting Israel, also condemned the “provocative” visit, without naming Mr Ben-Gvir, as a diplomatic strategy of non- commitalism.

Ms Mairav Zonszein, senior Israel-Palestine analyst with Crisis Group International, told The National that Mr Ben-Gvir “has made a career out of provoking confrontations and violence with Palestinians in his hometown area of Hebron and Kiryat Arba, and also in Sheikh Jarrah and East Jerusalem”.  “Even more tensions and even more provocations” are likely to be seen in areas with a large Palestinian presence, including Al Aqsa, as Ben-Gvir assumes direct control of Israel’s police, said Ms Zonszein.

Ben-Gvir said on Tuesday that the new Israeli government would “not surrender to the threats of Hamas” after the Palestinian militant group said his presence would be a “red line”.

He said the site was “the most important place for the people of Israel”.  “We maintain the freedom of movement for Muslims and Christians, but Jews will also go up to [Al Aqsa], and those who make threats must be dealt with, with an iron hand,” he said.

It is also important to remember  that when Ariel Sharon, way back in 2000, was involved in a similar incursion.  At that time the matter was referred to the United Nations Security Council, which takes the lead in determining the existence of a threat to the peace or act of aggression. It calls upon the parties to a dispute to settle the matter peacefully.  Hence, the Council’s Resolution 1322[10], adopted on 07^th October 2000, after recalling resolutions 476 (1980), 478 (1980), 672 (1990) and 1073 (1996), the Council deplored the visit by Ariel Sharon to the Temple Mount (referred to in the Resolution by its Arab name Al-Haram Al-Sharif) and the subsequent violence which, according to the Resolution, had resulted in the deaths of over 80 Palestinians.[11] The Resolution did not condemn or mention reported Israeli deaths,[12] although it did deplore what it described as “many other casualties.”

The Security Council reaffirmed that a settlement of the conflict must be based on resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), which called for peace based on negotiations between the Israeli and Arab sides. In this regard, it supported the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and reaffirmed the need for the full respect of the Holy Places of Jerusalem by all.

The resolution labeled Sharon’s visit to the Temple Mount a “provocation,” and it deplored the visit as well as subsequent violence there and throughout the other Israeli-occupied territories, particularly the use of force against Palestinians. The violence was the worst in years, and marked the beginning of the Second Intifada.[13]  The Council called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and return to negotiations and it called upon Israel to abide by its responsibilities under the Fourth Geneva Convention concerning the protection of civilians in war.[14] It stressed the importance of an objective inquiry into the recent events with the aim of preventing further repetition. Finally, the Secretary-General Kofi Annan was required to keep the Council informed on developments.[15]

The resolution was sponsored by Malaysia and supported by several European countries.[16]The original version of the resolution sought a strong condemnation of Israel.

It is also interesting to note that the United States, which abstained during the vote, threatened to veto this version, leading subsequently to the modification of the language originally contained in the Resolution 1322 document, to remove mention of Israel by name.[17] Such is the strong bond and relationship between United States and Israel, which is practising apartheid, oppression, discrimination and murder of civilian, children and even targeted killings of journalists, as in the case of Americas-Palestinian journalist, Ms Shireen Abu Akleh on 10^th My 2022[18], [19] In addition, in a state of arrogance and support from its master, Israeli Defence Force admitted 02^nd January 2023, that its troops shot Jana Zakarneh, a 16-year-old Palestinian girl who died during a raid in the occupied West Bank on Sunday night, saying she was killed by “unintentional” Israeli fire “aimed at armed gunmen.”  “Following an initial inquiry, it was determined that the girl who was killed was hit by unintentional fire aimed at armed gunmen on a roof in the area from which the force was fired upon,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) statement said. “The IDF and its commanders regret any harm to uninvolved civilians, including those who are in a combat environment and in close proximity to armed terrorists during exchanges of fire,” the statement continued. Jana’s uncle, Majed Zakarneh, told CNN on Monday that his niece “was shot with four bullets, two to her face, one to her neck, and one to her shoulder.” The Israeli military were “heavily shooting everywhere. Jana was inside the house with her family and when she heard people screaming she went to the rooftop to see what is happening,” Zakarneh said. “Twenty minutes after the soldiers left the neighborhood, her father went to look for her … He found her lying on the floor with a face full of blood,” Zakarneh said.[20]  Such is the indifference and bitterness of the people of Israel, who must take collective responsibility for the actions o its newly elected ultra-right-wing coalition government.  Analysis by any ordinary civilian can conclude as to how can the highly trained and experienced Israeli sniper shoot four bullets, in error, using a British made telescopic eyepiece, with precision shooting?

It is also noteworthy to describe the background of Itamar Ben Givr[21] to understand the context of the incursion, into the Al Aqsa Mosque compound.   He is an Israeli lawyer and politician, who serves as the newly appointed Minister of National Security.[22] He is additionally a member of the Knesset and leader of Otzma Yehudit.[23], [24] Described as far-right on the political spectrum, his voter base mostly consists of young Israelis.[25],[26]

Ben-Gvir, a settler in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has faced charges of hate speech against Arabs and was known to have a portrait in his living room of Israeli-American terrorist Baruch Goldstein, who massacred 29 Palestinian Muslim worshipers and wounded 125 others in Hebron, in the 1994 Cave of the Patriarchs massacre. He removed the portrait after he entered politics.[3] He was also previously convicted of supporting a terrorist group known as Kach, which espoused Kahanism, an extremist religious Zionist ideology.[27]

Under his leadership, the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power), a party which espouses Kahanism and anti-Arabism, won six seats in the 2022 Israeli legislative election, and is represented in what has been called the most right-wing and hardline government in Israel’s history.[28] He has called for the expulsion of Arab citizens of Israel who are not loyal to Israel.[29] As a lawyer, he is known for defending Jewish radicals on trial in Israel, as Pro Deo cases.[30]

Ben Gvir had been long accused of being a provocateur, having previously led several visits to the Temple Mount as activist and member of Knesset, contentious marches through Jerusalem’s Old City Muslim Quarter, and set up an office in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood which witnessed several evictions of Palestinians.[31] On 3 January 2023, he visited the Temple Mount where the Aqsa Mosque is located, spurring an international wave of criticism that labelled his visit provocative.  Ben-Gvir is married to Ayala Nimrodi, a distant relative of Ofer Nimrodi, the former owner of the Maariv daily newspaper. The couple has five children, and they live in the Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba/Hebron, which is deemed illegal under international law, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.[32]  Ben-Gvir was the parliamentary assistant in the 18^th Knesset for Michael Ben-Ari. On 23^rd  July 2017, he was part of the leadership of a protest that included dozens of people outside of the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem. The protest was held by both Lehava and Otzma Yehudit.[33]

On 25^th February 2019, Ben-Gvir said that Arab citizens of Israel who were not loyal to Israel “must be expelled”. Prior to entering office Ben-Gvir was known to have a portrait in his living room of Israeli-American terrorist Baruch Goldstein, who massacred 29 Palestinian Muslim worshipers and wounded 125 others in Hebron, in the 1994 Cave of the Patriarchs massacre; [34] he removed the portrait in preparation for the 2020 Israeli legislative election in hope of being allowed to run on the unified right list headed by Naftali Bennett.[35]

Ben-Gvir had planned to run for a seat in the Knesset in the September 2019 Israeli legislative election in the first slot of a combined Noam/Otzma Yehudit electoral list, though the two parties split over Otzma’s inclusion of a secular candidate on the combined list (which Noam disagreed with). Ben-Gvir was in the third slot of a joint list that includes Otzma Yehudit, Noam and the Religious Zionist Party that ran in the 2021 Israeli legislative election. He was elected to the Knesset as the alliance won six seats.[36]

In May 2021, he was reported to be frequenting the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, in a show of solidarity with Jewish settlers who live there. In October 2021, Ben-Gvir and Joint List leader Ayman Odeh had a physical confrontation during a visit to the Kaplan Medical Center to see Miqdad Qawasmeh, a Hamas operative who had been on a hunger strike for over three months of his administrative detention. Ben-Gvir was against Qawasmeh being treated in an Israeli hospital, and stated that he had visited to check the detainee’s conditions, as well as to “see up close this miracle that a person remains alive despite not eating for several months”. As Ben-Gvir attempted to enter Qawasmeh’s room, he accused Odeh of being a terrorist for supporting extremists like Qawasmeh. Odeh then struck first, pushing Ben-Gvir, and the pair began to scuffle before being separated by bystanders.[37] Ben-Gvir later filed a complaint against Odeh, claiming that he had “committed a serious criminal act”.[37]

In December 2021, Ben-Gvir was investigated after a video surfaced of him pulling a handgun on Arab security guards during a parking dispute in the underground garage of the Expo Tel Aviv conference center. The guards asked Ben-Gvir to move his vehicle as he was parked in a prohibited space. He then drew a pistol and brandished it at the guards. Both parties taunted each other, and Ben-Gvir claimed that he felt his life threatened. The guards were unarmed.  He was criticized by lawmakers across the aisle, and the incident was investigated.[38]

In January 2022, his level of security was increased. Due to frequent death threats, Ben-Gvir is accompanied by multiple security guards in public, and extra security measures are taken to ensure his safety.  In October 13, 2022, in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, Ben-Gvir took part in the clashes between Israeli Jewish settlers and the local Palestinian residents, brandishing a gun, telling the police to shoot at Palestinians throwing stones at the scene, and yelling at them that “We’re the landlords here, remember that, I am your landlord.” This was a message that was later repeated by him in a tweet on the morning after the 2022 election in his victory tweet.[39]

In the 2022 Israeli legislative election, Ben-Gvir’s party had an unprecedented success, more than doubling its votes from the 2022 Israeli legislative election, thus becoming the 3rd largest party in the 25th Knesset. Ben-Gvir and his party are expected to be an integral part of a Netanyahu-led government. It was reported in late November 2022 that Ben-Gvir would head the newly created National Security Ministry, whose duties would include overseeing the Israel Border Police in the West Bank.[40]

On 03^rd January 2023, Ben Gvir, as national security minister, visited the Temple Mount, which prompted a wave of international criticism from the United States, European Union, and Arab countries including Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who termed his visit as provocative and called on Israel to respect the status quo of holy sites. Ben Gvir had been long accused of being a provocateur, having previously led several visits to the Temple Mount as activist and member of Knesset, contentious marches through Jerusalem’s Old City Muslim Quarter, and set up an office in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood which witnessed Israeli-Palestinian tensions.

The video shows three Israeli soldiers pushing the man to the ground in an attempt to handcuff him while onlookers are heard shouting, “leave him alone”. The victim of this brutality is seen trying to shield his head from the kicks.

Six Muslim worshippers at the mosque for the evening prayer were arrested on the grounds of causing disturbances in Jerusalem by shouting nationalist rhetoric at the police, according to Haaretz. Witnesses told the official Palestinian news agency WAFA, however, that Israeli security forces provoked and attacked the worshippers at Al-Rahma Gate after storming inside the prayer area with their military boots on. One woman was among the six Palestinians detained. The assault took place near Bab Al-Rahma, one of the gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque, where friction between Palestinian Muslim worshippers and Israeli security forces is more and more common. One of the issues in question is that, according to the Palestinians, the police are preventing them from bringing food into Al-Aqsa.

According to the International Middle East Media Centre, the Islamic Waqf and Endowment Department condemned the attack, which is one of the dozens of similar violations against Al-Aqsa Mosque and Palestinian Muslims and Christians in the occupied city. It added that Israel is trying to close Bab Al-Rahma yet again, to allow Israeli colonial-settler groups to occupy it.

Haaretz reported that Israeli officials insist that they will take action to prevent disruptions of public order or the shouting of Palestinian nationalist rhetoric. “During the evening, a small number of worshippers in Temple Mount [Al-Aqsa Mosque compound] began shouting nationalist rhetoric at the police, forcing the police to disperse them and arrest six who were confronting them.”

Earlier in the evening, Israeli occupation forces arrested five Palestinians at the same location in Al-Aqsa Mosque without providing any reasons, Anadolu reported.  Al-Rahma Gate (Gate of Mercy), a large hall that is part of the bigger Al-Dhahabi Gate (Golden Gate), was closed by the Israeli authorities in 2003 during the Second Intifada. In 2017, an Israeli court renewed the closure order.

However, in February last year, hundreds of Palestinian worshippers protested against the closure and entered Al-Rahma Gate, reopening it before praying there. Israel regards this as a violation of the status quo and has since escalated its harassment of Muslim worshippers and Al-Aqsa Mosque guards.[42]

The Bottom Line is,  that the Al Aqsa Mosque Complex, known as Temple Mount by the Jews, it is Judaism’s most sacred site and Islam’s third holiest site, after Mecca and Medina. The mosque and its precincts cover 14 hectares in East Jerusalem, occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War in June 1967 and annexed in 1980. The Palestinians want to make this part of Jerusalem the capital of the State of Palestine.[43]  Known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) or simply al-Aqsa Mosque, the site is home to the Dome of the Rock, the most imposing building on the site where, according to tradition, Abraham offered his son as a sacrifice and from which the Prophet Mohammed rose to heaven. To the south side of the compound is the al-Aqsa Mosque (or “remote mosque”), built in the seventh century after the capture of Jerusalem by the Caliph Omar.[44]  It is built on the site of Solomon’s Temple, constructed in the 10^th century BC and destroyed by the Romans in the year 70, which is said to have housed the Ark of the Covenant. The Wailing Wall (or Western Wall), its most important known remnant, supported the compound where the building stood and is considered by Jews to be the holiest place of prayer because of its proximity to the “Holy of Holies,” the central part of the destroyed temple of King Solomon.

Despite the Israeli army capturing East Jerusalem in 1967, the mosque has remained under the administration of the Waqf, an Islamic foundation funded and run by Jordan. Guards employed by the foundation are responsible for ensuring compliance with religious rules, but security is provided by the Israeli police.

By virtue of a historic status quo that the state of Israel committed to respecting in 1967, Muslims may enter at any time of the day or night, and Jews, like all non-Muslims, may enter at certain times, under strict surveillance and only through the Mughrabi Gate (or Dung Gate). But they are not allowed to pray there, nor to enter in possession of religious symbols. In recent years, extremists have demanded this right and have been going there in increasing numbers to pray more or less openly. According to the group Beyadenu, which coordinates their actions, 50,000 Jewish visitors – often the same ones – were counted between September 2021 and September 2022 (which corresponds to the Jewish year), i.e. twice as many as the previous year.  The growing presence of these visitors and the rituals that some of them perform there are increasingly angering Muslims, who fear that the Jewish state will change the conditions of access and the rules, as demanded by Itamar Ben-Gvir. His appointment to government, and specifically as head of the security forces in charge of security at these sites, is fueling these fears. The Waqf regularly protests but has no power to oppose it, and the Israeli police seem to be increasingly lenient and partial towards supporters of “equal rights” for Jews and Muslims, but more so towards the Jews.[45]

Regarding the form of the ruling coalition, in order to form his sixth government, Benyamin Netanyahu has had to strike deals with several far-right and ultra-Orthodox religious parties, such as that of Mr. Ben-Gvir, the driving force behind the Religious Zionism ideological movement, which took 14 of the 120 seats in the Knesset. These deals state that “the Jewish people have an exclusive and inalienable right to all parts of the Land of Israel” and that “the government will promote and develop the settlement of all parts of the Land of Israel,” including the occupied West Bank. However, in its non-binding platform outline, the coalition promises to respect the “status quo on matters of religion and state […] including the holy sites.

The ultra-Orthodox parties Shass and Unified Torah Judaism, members of the coalition, are hostile to any change in the status quo, as is the chief rabbinate of Israel, which believes that the current situation does not allow worshippers to perform the purification rituals needed to enter the Holy of Holies. Ben-Gvir, who had already visited the Holy Land several times as a member of Parliament, is a very outspoken advocate of this and has been given extensive powers. A recent law passed in the Knesset, which he made a condition of his appointment to government, gives him the authority to define broad police policy and establish “general principles of action.” It is the police who, in fact, determine policy on Jewish prayer and Temple Mount visiting hours.[46] .  The “status quo” which existed previously now runs the risk of being changed and is the reason for the peace disruption, possibly leading to another Intifada or Palestinian uprising. On the eve of his last visit to the compound, Itamar was received by Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu.

The Likud, the prime minister’s party, confirmed that it was not opposed.  Before the legislative elections, Beyadenu presented candidates from several parties, including the Likud, with a list of demands including granting Jews freedom of worship, equal visiting hours for Jews and Muslims and opening the site for Jews on Shabbat. According to the organisation, which is also campaigning for the eventual construction of a synagogue on the site, several members of the Religious Zionist Party and the Likud have approved some of these demands.  Equal rights may seem like a legitimate demand, but the reason Palestinians oppose it so strongly is that they know it is intended to gradually displace them from the Old City, as is happening in Hebron.

In 2021, after the arrest of an overzealous worshipper, a Jerusalem court ruled that discreet prayers were not forbidden at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, but the ruling was overturned on appeal.  The impact of these changes, would be tremendous as any attempt to change the status quo at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound will be considered a declaration of war, the Palestinian Authority warned on the eve of Mr. Ben-Gvir’s visit. Indeed, most Israeli initiatives at the site have been met with violent reactions.

In July 2017, the installation of metal detectors at several entrances to the site gave rise to new clashes. Ten days after their installation, Mr. Netanyahu’s government had to resolve to dismantle them to defuse the crisis.[47]

At the time of submission of this manuscript, with thanks to author Jean-Philippe Lefief of Le Monde, for publication, the author is aware that the incursion has resulted in the Arab nations, calling for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to intervene and issue a ruling on the matter.  It is highly likely hat United Nations will veto the resolution if not in favour of Israel, as has happened previously. This could therefore be another reason which will lead to another Intifada, as well.

References:

[1] Personal quote by the author, December 2022.

[2] https://www.bing.com/search?q=Ariel+Sharon+incursion+into+Al+Aqsa+mosque+compound&qs=n&form=QBRE&sp=-1&pq=ariel+sharon+incursion+into+al+aqsa+mosque+compound&sc=0-51&sk=&cvid=3366AC6678E94B65B5C07825C1A9A1F1&ghsh=0&ghacc=0&ghpl=#:~:text=September%2028%2C%202000-,On%20September%2028%2C%202000%2C%20a%20visit%20to%20the%20al%2DAqsa%20Mosque,at%20several%20entrances%20to%20the%20site%20gave%20rise%20to%20new%20clashes.,-Why%20is%20the

[3] https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/september-28-2000-ariel-sharon-visits-the-temple-mount-sparking-the-second-intifada/

[4] Richard Kreitner is a contributing writer and the author of Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America’s Imperfect Union. His writings are at www.richardkreitner.com.

[5] https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/september-28-2000-ariel-sharon-visits-the-temple-mount-sparking-the-second-intifada/#:~:text=Ariel%20Sharon%2C%20center%2C%20flanked%20by%20his%20security%20guards%20as%20he%20leaves%20the%20Temple%20Mount%20compound%20on%20September%2028%2C%202000.%20(AP%20Photo)

[6] https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=4118603fd06468faJmltdHM9MTY3Mjg3NjgwMCZpZ3VpZD0zOWJhOTNjNy03Mjc4LTYwNTctMmY5Mi05OGMyNzM1MjYxM2YmaW5zaWQ9NTIyNA&ptn=3&hsh=3&fclid=39ba93c7-7278-6057-2f92-98c27352613f&psq=Edward+Said&u=a1aHR0cHM6Ly9lbi53aWtpcGVkaWEub3JnL3dpa2kvRWR3YXJkX1NhaWQ&ntb=1

[7] https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/september-28-2000-ariel-sharon-visits-the-temple-mount-sparking-the-second-intifada/#:~:text=At%20the%20end%20of%20October%2C%20Edward%20Said%20wrote%20a%20piece%20for%20The%20Nation%20surveying%20the%20situation.

[8] https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/september-28-2000-ariel-sharon-visits-the-temple-mount-sparking-the-second-intifada/#:~:text=the%20stage%20seems%20set%20for%20a%20national%20unity%20government%20ready%20to%20be%20still%20more%20violent%20and%20repressive.%E2%80%A6

[9] https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/september-28-2000-ariel-sharon-visits-the-temple-mount-sparking-the-second-intifada/#:~:text=the%20military%20occupation%20has%20ended.%20No%20Palestinian%2C%20not%20even%20Arafat%2C%20can%20really%20accept%20anything%20less.

[10] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1322

[11] https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2000/sc6934.doc.htm

[12] http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+since+2000/Victims+of+Palestinian+Violence+and+Terrorism+sinc.htm

[13] http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/28/newsid_3687000/3687762.stm

[14] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1322#:~:text=Marshall%2C%20Edgar%20S.%20(2002).%20Israel%3A%20current%20issues%20and%20historical%20background.%20Nova%20Publishers.%20p.%C2%A06.%20ISBN%C2%A0978%2D1%2D59033%2D325%2D9.

[15] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1322#:~:text=Finally%2C%20the%20Secretary%2DGeneral%20Kofi%20Annan%20was%20required%20to%20keep%20the%20Council%20informed%20on%20developments.

[16] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1322#:~:text=Kutty%2C%20Faisal%20(2000).%20%22Canada%27s%20Support%20of%20U.N.%20Security%20Council%20Resolution%20Draws%20Mixed%20Reaction%20From%20Politicians%22.%20Washington%20Report%20on%20Middle%20East%20Affairs%3A%2048%2C%2077%2C%2078.%20Archived%20from%20the%20original%20on%2023%20April%202005.%20Retrieved%2021%20November%202006.

[17] http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Foreign+Relations/Israels+Foreign+Relations+since+1947/1999-2001/176++Security+Council+Resolution+1322+-2000–+End.htm?

[18] https://www.transcend.org/tms/2022/12/the-forgotten-journalists-part-1-the-assassination-of-shireen-abu-akleh/

[19] https://www.transcend.org/tms/2022/05/the-global-killing-fields-of-journalists-the-death-of-shireen-abu-akleh-part-1/

[20] https://edition.cnn.com/2022/12/12/middleeast/palestinian-girl-killed-idf-raid-intl/index.html

[21] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir

[22] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/25/far-right-extremist-itamar-ben-gvir-to-be-israel-national-security-minister

[23] http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/221534

[24] https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20221027-israel-s-far-right-leader-ben-gvir-wins-adoring-young-fans

[25] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63754806

[26] https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-religion-jerusalem-israel-benjamin-netanyahu-189ef3fc8c82d7163c1339e64bb1e40f

[27] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Toosi%2C%20Nahal%20(20%20December%202022).%20%22Biden%27s%20strategy%20for%20a%20far%2Dright%20Israel%3A%20Lay%20it%20all%20on%20Bibi%22.%20Politico.%20Retrieved%2025%20December%202022.

[28] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Keller%2DLynn%2C%20Carrie%20(29%20December%202022).%20%22Netanyahu%20returns%20as%20PM%2C%20wins%20Knesset%20support%20for%20Israel%27s%20most%20hardline%20government%22.%20The%20Times%20of%20Israel.%20Retrieved%2029%20December%202022.

[29] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Magid%2C%20Jacob%20(24%20February%202019).%20%22Otzma%20Yehudit%20candidate%3A%20Critics%20have%20to%20go%20back%2030%20years%20in%20order%20to%20attack%20us%22.%20The%20Times%20of%20Israel.%20Retrieved%2025%20February%202019.

[30] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Maltz%2C%20Judy%20(4%20January%202016).%20%22The%20Lawyer%20for%20Jewish%20Terrorists%20Who%20Started%20Out%20by%20Stealing%20Rabin%27s%20Car%20Emblem%22.%20Haaretz.%20Retrieved%209%20July%202017.

[31] https://www.timesofisrael.com/jordan-accuses-ben-gvir-of-storming-al-aqsa-by-visiting-temple-mount/

[32] Maltz, Judy (4 January 2016). “The Lawyer for Jewish Terrorists Who Started Out by Stealing Rabin’s Car Emblem”. Haaretz.

[33] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Aharon%2C%20Eliran%20(23%20July%202017).%20%22%27The%20people%20expect%20vengeance%27%22.%20Israel%20National%20News.%20Retrieved%2024%20July%202017

[34] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Harkov%2C%20Lahav%20(25%20February%202019).%20%22Netanyahu%27s%20deflection%20of%20his%20involvement%20with%20Otzma%20%2D%20analysis%22.%20The%20Jerusalem%20Post.%20Retrieved%2025%20February%202019

[35] https://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-5660727,00.html

[36] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Wootliff%2C%20Raoul%3B%20Magid%2C%20Jacob%20(26%20March%202021).%20%22Reform%20rabbi%2C%20Kahanist%20agitator%2C%20firebrand%20writer%3A%20The%20new%20Knesset%27s%2016%20rookies%22.%20The%20Times%20of%20Israel.%20Retrieved%209%20April%202021.

[37] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Breiner%2C%20Josh%20(14%20January%202022).%20%22Arab%2DIsraeli%20Leader%20to%20Be%20Probed%20for%20Shoving%20Kahanist%20Lawmaker%22.%20Haaretz.%20Retrieved%2012%20February%202022.

[38] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=Winer%2C%20Stuart%20(22%20December%202021).%20%22Far%2Dright%20MK%20Ben%20Gvir%20summoned%20by%20Knesset%20security%20over%20gun%20incident%20in%20parking%20lot%22.%20The%20Times%20of%20Israel.%20Retrieved%2012%20February%202022.

[39] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=%D7%90%D7%99%D7%AA%D7%9E%D7%A8%20%D7%91%D7%9F%20%D7%92%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A8%20%5B%40itamarbengvir,%E2%80%93%20via%20Twitter.

[40] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itamar_Ben-Gvir#:~:text=TOI%20Staff%20(25%20November%202022).%20%22Ben%20Gvir%20to%20get%20newly%20created%20role%20of%20national%20security%20minister%20in%20deal%20with%20Likud%22.%20The%20Times%20of%20Israel.%20Retrieved%2025%20November%202022.

[41] https://www.timesheadline.com/palestine/israeli-soldiers-kick-palestinian-in-the-head-in-al-aqsa-mosque-41839.html

[42] https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=f718e4efdd8cda6dJmltdHM9MTY3Mjg3NjgwMCZpZ3VpZD0zOWJhOTNjNy03Mjc4LTYwNTctMmY5Mi05OGMyNzM1MjYxM2YmaW5zaWQ9NTE2MA&ptn=3&hsh=3&fclid=39ba93c7-7278-6057-2f92-98c27352613f&psq=However%2c+in+February+last+year%2c+hundreds+of+Palestinian+worshippers+protested+against+the+closure+and+entered+Al-Rahma+Gate%2c+reopening+it+before+praying+there.+Israel+regards+this+as+a+violation+of+the+status+quo+and+has+since+escalated+its+harassment+of+Muslim+worshippers+and+Al-Aqsa+Mosque+guards.&u=a1aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucGFsZXN0aW5lY2hyb25pY2xlLmNvbS9pc3JhZWwtYXJyZXN0cy01LXBhbGVzdGluaWFucy1hZnRlci1yYWlkaW5nLWFsLXJhaG1hLWdhdGUtdmlkZW9zLw&ntb=1

[43] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/01/04/why-is-the-al-aqsa-mosque-compound-such-a-flashpoint-site_6010313_4.html#:~:text=On%20September%2028%2C%202000%2C%20a%20visit%20to%20the,to%20the%20site%20gave%20rise%20to%20new%20clashes.

[44] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/01/04/why-is-the-al-aqsa-mosque-compound-such-a-flashpoint-site_6010313_4.html#:~:text=Known%20to%20Muslims,the%20Caliph%20Omar.

[45] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/01/04/why-is-the-al-aqsa-mosque-compound-such-a-flashpoint-site_6010313_4.html#:~:text=The%20growing%20presence,Jews%20and%20Muslims.

[46] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/01/04/why-is-the-al-aqsa-mosque-compound-such-a-flashpoint-site_6010313_4.html#:~:text=the%20ruling%20coalition,Mount%20visiting%20hours.

[47] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/01/04/why-is-the-al-aqsa-mosque-compound-such-a-flashpoint-site_6010313_4.html  Article cited in good faith from Le Monde as a peace initiative. This is a non-remunerative exercise. Thank you to the author Jean-Philippe Lefief and Le Monde.

[48] https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/KId2Bifav89y1Bd2nqR6v15xljU=/1440×0/filters:format(jpg):quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/thenational/TRMVQG4BRU43I3VXJOBD7SXAF4.jpg

______________________________________________

Professor G. Hoosen M. Vawda (Bsc; MBChB; PhD.Wits) is a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment.
Director: Glastonbury Medical Research Centre; Community Health and Indigent Programme Services; Body Donor Foundation SA.
Principal Investigator: Multinational Clinical Trials
Consultant: Medical and General Research Ethics; Internal Medicine and Clinical Psychiatry:UKZN, Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine
Executive Member: Inter Religious Council KZN SA
Public Liaison: Medical Misadventures
Activism: Justice for All
Email: vawda@ukzn.ac.za

Tags: Fascism, Gaza, Israel, Israeli occupation, MENA, Middle East, Netanyahu, Palestine, Right Politics, West Bank, Zionism

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