"Tolerance" indeed. And no surprise that this museum thing is being (at least partly) funded by Americans, or that the courts support the Israelis. Remember the outrage around the world when the "Arbeit Macht Frei" sign was stolen recently? Yet when it's the Israelis doing the destruction (be it of people, homes, olive groves or, as in this case, cemeteries), they always get away with it, even when there is any international condemnation (which they just ignore).
Cemeteries are fascinating historically and archaeologically, so even just for that reason this destruction is an act of philistinism which shouldn't be allowed. And of course it's wiping out yet more of the Palestinian history so the Israelis can keep pretending that the land has always been theirs and that the Palestinians were never there.
All very depressing. I've always wanted to go to Jerusalem as a tourist because of the history and the architecture, but Israel's treatment of the Palestinians just makes me so angry that no way would I ever give them one penny of my hard-earned.
Sorry about the rant! But I don't hold out much hope for the campaign to preserve the cemetery - it sounds like too much of it has already been destroyed.
Just as a footnote to this story, the Supreme Muslim Council of British Mandate Palestine had planned to build a new business centre on the cemetary in 1945, having received dispensations from senior Egyptian, Hejazi and Damascene clerics. The Museum of Tolerance, in contrast, is planned for a parking lot which borders on the cemetary. (The Supreme Muslim Council had earlier, under the presidency of Hajj Amīn al-Husseini, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, had leased part of the cemetary to al-Husseini's cousin Ismail al-Husseini to use as a quarry. Not that this in any way justifies building anything on a cemetary today.
"Tolerance" indeed. And no surprise that this museum thing is being (at least partly) funded by Americans, or that the courts support the Israelis. Remember the outrage around the world when the "Arbeit Macht Frei" sign was stolen recently? Yet when it's the Israelis doing the destruction (be it of people, homes, olive groves or, as in this case, cemeteries), they always get away with it, even when there is any international condemnation (which they just ignore).
ReplyDeleteCemeteries are fascinating historically and archaeologically, so even just for that reason this destruction is an act of philistinism which shouldn't be allowed. And of course it's wiping out yet more of the Palestinian history so the Israelis can keep pretending that the land has always been theirs and that the Palestinians were never there.
All very depressing. I've always wanted to go to Jerusalem as a tourist because of the history and the architecture, but Israel's treatment of the Palestinians just makes me so angry that no way would I ever give them one penny of my hard-earned.
Sorry about the rant! But I don't hold out much hope for the campaign to preserve the cemetery - it sounds like too much of it has already been destroyed.
Just as a footnote to this story, the Supreme Muslim Council of British Mandate Palestine had planned to build a new business centre on the cemetary in 1945, having received dispensations from senior Egyptian, Hejazi and Damascene clerics. The Museum of Tolerance, in contrast, is planned for a parking lot which borders on the cemetary. (The Supreme Muslim Council had earlier, under the presidency of Hajj Amīn al-Husseini, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, had leased part of the cemetary to al-Husseini's cousin Ismail al-Husseini to use as a quarry. Not that this in any way justifies building anything on a cemetary today.
ReplyDelete