The dictators of the Arab world sure have a lot of chutzpah claiming that we Jews don't respect their holy sites when they clearly have no respect for ours.
For example, Qatar, the world's leading sponsor of Islamist terrorism aside from Iran, reacted angrily when a group called the Temple Mount Activists posted an AI-generated video on the internet that envisioned the reconstruction of the Jewish Temple, replacing the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque now situated on the Temple Mount. The country's rulers issued a statement calling the video "a dangerous provocation that could significantly escalate violence in the region, especially amid the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip."
Similarly, after Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited the Temple Mount earlier this month, Jordan issued a statement calling his visit, "a dangerous escalation, an unacceptable provocation, a violation of the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and a breach of its historical and legal status quo."
For those of you who are wondering, the status quo that Jordan's Hashemite tyrants are referring to is the arrangement by which Jews are forbidden from praying on the Temple Mount – the holiest site in Judaism – and can only visit it at certain times. Praying on the Mount is a privilege reserved exclusively for Muslims. This is what Israel agreed to following the reunification of Jerusalem in the 1967 war and reaffirmed its commitment to in the 1994 Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty. And despite the fact that this arrangement is outrageous and antisemitic to the core, Israel has adhered to it for nearly sixty years.
Yet, we are still accused by Arab dictators of engaging in "provocations." May I remind these tyrants that their forefathers built the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque on the site where our First and Second Temples once stood. I'd call that a provocation.
May I also remind them that for the better part of the last century, they have shown nothing but disrespect for our holy sites. For example, when the Jordanians controlled East Jerusalem, including the Old City and the Temple Mount, between 1949 and 1967, they destroyed several Old City synagogues, while using others to house animals or refuse. Not one Jew was allowed to pray at the Western Wall for 19 years. They also vandalized Jewish cemeteries and burned Jewish Torah scrolls and holy books. I'd call these actions provocations, to say the least.
Today, our Arab neighbors' disrespect of our holy sites continues. The Waqf, the Islamic body responsible for administering the Temple Mount, known to Muslims as Haram Al-Sharif, has frequently engaged in illegal digging at the site. In 1999, for instance, it disposed of more than 9,000 tons of dirt mixed with invaluable archaeological artifacts, which are now being salvaged by the Temple Mount Sifting Project.
In the region of Samaria (the northern West Bank), illegal Palestinian construction has caused significant damage to the site of Shomron, the ancient capital of the northern Kingdom of Israel in Biblical times. In Shechem (Nablus), Joseph's Tomb has become the frequent target of Palestinian vandals and attacks on Jewish worshippers. After Palestinians attacked the site in the year 2000, Israel withdrew, and the Palestinian Authority promised to protect the site. Not surprisingly, they didn't keep that promise, prompting Israel to reassert some control over the site. Today, Jewish worshippers can only pray at Joseph's Tomb under heavy armed escort by the IDF.
I'd say it's time for Israel to stop listening to the hypocritical accusations of Arab dictators and start reasserting its control of Judaism's holiest sites. For starters, we should tear up the "status quo" on the Temple Mount. A Jewish state should not be in the business of preventing Jews from worshipping at their holiest site. Jews should have the same right to pray on the Mount as Muslims. And if Arab dictators and their followers don't like it, too bad.
