I came across an opinion
piece entitled, “The Temple Mount should be defended for all Jews and
Muslims.” The article is a couple of
weeks old but is worth mentioning. It
paints an interesting, but complex picture of the dynamics that exist in the
Muslim world in the Middle East surrounding the Temple Mount. Following the normalization of relations
between Israel with Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, one would think Muslims from the latter
countries would be able to visit and pray at the mount. They are Muslim. However, the Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh
Mohammed Hussein's approach is “I don’t think so!” He issued a fatwa (ruling) that banned any
Arab who normalized relations with Israel from praying at Al-Aqsa. When delegates from the United Arab Emirates
and Bahraini recently visited the Temple Mount to pray they were denounced and harassed
by the Waqf guards.
When Sheikh Khalid
bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa, a representative of the monarchy of Bahraini, visited the
Temple Mount he concealed his nationality for fear he would be thrown off the
site. Al-Khalifa stated, “Al-Aqsa is not
just for the Palestinians. It belongs to
the entire Muslim world. It is
inconceivable that they tell someone, ‘You normalized with Israel, you won’t
pray in Jerusalem.’” Please forgive my humor, but this reminds me of a Seinfeld
episode: No Soup for You
where an angry store owner tells his customers who infuriate him, “No soup for
you!” Those who prevent Israelis from praying on the Temple Mount also forbid other Muslims from doing so too.
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| Dome of the Rock where some argue the Jewish Temple once stood. |
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