Jewish Tomb of Patriarchs Desecrated by Muslims

“Ma’arat HaMachpela,” the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, is the second holiest site to Jews in the world. The site was off-limits to Jews and Christians for 700 years – from 1267-1967.  Jews were prevented from praying at the tombs despite its sanctity to Jews, and despite the fact that the building above the caves was built by Herod some 2,000 years ago, six hundred years prior to Muhammad’s birth.

Since Israel’s return to Hebron in 1967 the site has been accessible to all people of all faiths. However, Muslims refuse to accept freedom of worship, claim that it’s a mosque and declare that should they ever again control the site, it will be off-limits to anyone not Muslim. (Neither the site, nor the city of Hebron is mentioned anywhere in the Koran.)

Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is obligated to safeguard holy sites and ensure free access to them.

For reasons unknown to me, Jews opened up the Ma’arat HaMachpela to Arabs several years ago so that they can pray there 10 days a year for their Ramadan.

While the Ma’arat HaMachpela, burial place of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs was closed to Jews for Ramadan, Muslim worshippers used the oppurtunity to desecrate the holy site. Hamas flags and puddles of urine were found near the Torahs inside. While these detestable acts were being perpetrated by Muslims, the godless Arab-loving mainstream media never reported it. Here is a video of the desecration:

Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is obligated to safeguard holy sites and ensure free access to them. According to Annex III, Appendix I, Article 32 of the 28 September 1995 Oslo 2 accord:

“2. Both sides shall respect and protect the listed below religious rights of Jews, Christians, Moslems and Samaritans:

a. protection of the Holy Sites;
b. free access to the Holy Sites; and
c. freedom of worship and practice.”

Here is a partial list of assaults on Jewish Holy Sites by Muslim Arabs:

1) Abraham’s Oak Russian Monastery – located in the Palestinian-controlled part of Hebron, the monastery belonged to the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. On July 5, 1997, Palestinian policemen arrived at the monastery and ordered the monks and nuns to vacate the premises. The PA officers physically removed all of the monks and nuns, and took over the site.

2) Rachel’s Tomb – The Tomb, located on the outskirts of Bethlehem, is the burial site of the Biblical matriarch Rachel and is under Israeli control. During the September 1996 riots, the PA orchestrated riots near the Tomb in which a Palestinian mob assaulted the site and hurled rocks and firebombs at it, causing damage to the outer part of the structure. Palestinian policemen on the scene shot and wounded Israeli soldiers guarding the Tomb.

3) Joseph’s Tomb – During the September 1996 riots, a Palestinian mob led by Palestinian policemen assaulted the Tomb. Palestinian security agents opened fire on Israeli troops at the site, killing 6 Israeli soldiers. After the Israeli forces temporarily withdrew, the Palestinian mob entered the site and set fire to it. They burned the Jewish prayer books, Bibles and religious articles inside the structure and caused extensive damage.

Here is a partial list of Muslim Arab disparagement of Jewish Holy Sites

* “If the Jews really want peace, they must absolutely forget about having any rights over the Temple Mount or Al-Aksa Mosque… the Western Wall also belongs to Moslems, and was given to the Jews as a place of prayer only because the British asked and the Moslems agreed
out of the goodness of their hearts. The Western Wall is just a fence belonging to a Moslem holy site.”

— Sheikh Ikrama Sabri, the official PA Mufti (senior Muslim cleric) who was appointed to his position by Yasser Arafat, in an interview with the Israeli weekly Makor Rishon, May 22, 1998. [Note: PA Chairman Yasser Arafat has made similar claims in the past. Arafat said, “That is not the Western Wall at all, but a Moslem shrine.” (Ma’ariv, 11 October 1996)].

* “Any extremist who enters the Temple Mount compound will not leave it alive.”

— Hatam Abdel Kader, member of the PA’s Legislative Council, in an interview with the official PA radio station the Voice of Palestine, when asked about the possibility of Jews praying on the Temple Mount. (Voice of Palestine, 24 May 1998).

* “The archeology of Jerusalem is diverse – excavations in the Old City and the areas surrounding it revealed Umayyad Islamic palaces, Roman ruins, Armenian ruins and others, but nothing Jewish. Outside of what is mentioned/ written in the Old and New Testaments, there is no tangible evidence of any Jewish traces/ remains in the old city of Jerusalem and its immediate vicinity.”

— PA Information Ministry Press Release, 10 December 1997.

* “Be alert and treat Joseph’s Tomb and Rachel’s Tomb as parcels of Palestinian land which must be liberated, and treat Joseph and Rachel as two people who died, like anyone else.”

— excerpt from an article in the official PA newspaper Al-Hayat Al-Jadeeda, 1 December 1997, concerning Jewish holy sites in Nablus and Bethlehem.

* “The ‘Al-Buraq’ Wall [the Western Wall] is a part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Jews have no relation to it, whether or not a decision to expropriate it was made.”

— PA Mufti Ikrama Sabri in the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam, 22 November 1997.

Click here to read further about Jewish Holy sites desecrated by Muslims.