Yesterday, and somewhat shockingly, the Los Angeles Times published an opinion piece by Rabbi Martin Hier of the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) defending the desecration of the Mamilla Cemetery in Jerusalem so that the SWC can build its "Center for Human Dignity– Museum of Tolerance" there. I say shockingly because the piece contained so many falsehoods. I excerpt Hier below. Then I will point out the stretchers. Rabbi Hier:
The museum is not being built on what can rightfully be called the Mamilla Cemetery, but on a three-acre site in the heart of West Jerusalem that, for more than half a century, served as the city’s municipal car park. Each day, hundreds of people of all faiths parked in the three-level underground structure without any protest from Muslim religious or academic leaders or interest groups. Additionally, telephone and electrical cables and sewer lines were laid deep below ground in the early 1960s, again without any protest.
As the [Israeli] Supreme Court noted in its ruling, "for almost 50 years the compound has not been a part of the cemetery, both in the normative sense and in the practical sense, and it was used for various public purposes." It also noted: "During all those years no one raised any claim, on even one occasion, that the planning procedures violated the sanctity of the site, or that they were contrary to the law as a result of the historical and religious uniqueness of the site. . . . For decades this area was not regarded as a cemetery by the general public or by the Muslim community. . . . No one denied this position."
Now take a look at this week’s petition to international human-rights bodies by a coalition of groups trying to preserve the Mamilla cemetery. In that petition, you will read the following facts:
There has never been any doubt about the centrality of the 33-acre Mamilla cemetery to Muslim practice in Jerusalem. Throughout the 1800s, Ottoman rulers "fastidiously" recognized the boundaries of the cemetery, surrounding it with a wall and roads. As for the Brits who followed as governors, they officially recognized the cemetery as an "Islamic endowment" (1938) and an "antiquities site." (1944)
Then in 1948 the Israelis took over West Jerusalem; and from the beginning of Israeli rule, Muslim authorities appealed to Israel to protect the cemetery. In 1948 the Israeli Relgious Affairs Ministry duly said the cemetery "is considered to be one of the most prominent Muslim cemeteries," with remains going back to the great general of the Crusades, Salah-ah-Din. "Israel will always know to protect and respect this site."
For a few years the Israelis kept their word. And then the encroachments began. The petitioners write: "Israel has gradually expropriated and destroyed most of the cemetery." It began by building an "Independence Park" over half the cemetery in the 1960s. Then in 1964, it built that parking lot Hier refers to, over about three acres of the cemetery. Then it built an underground parking garage and ran cables and other infrastructure through the site.
Palestinians have never been silent about the desecration. On at least one occasion they petitioned UNESCO to stop it.
In recent years, the Israeli Antiquities Authority awarded the 3-acre parking lot site to the Simon Wiesenthal Center to build its Tolerance hall on, and an archaeologist was sent in to see what was going on. The report of this "Chief Excavator" was emphatic: There are thousands of graves under the parking lot that date to the 12th century. They have already been disturbed by construction. Some of the bodies have been removed. The construction zone is shrouded in secrecy.
If just one of those bodies were Jewish, the petitioners state, construction would stop in a nanosecond.
The archaelogist, Gideon Suleimani, was pressured to conclude his work in a perfunctory manner. But he said that the project was an "archeological crime" and "We’re talking about tens of thousands of skeletons under the ground there, and not just a few dozen."
Suleimani’s report was suppressed by the Israeli government when it went to the Supreme Court to get the opinion that Hier quotes so approvingly above. That is why the Mamilla petitioners, who include Muslim and Jewish groups, are going to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN special rapporteur on religious freedom, the UN special rapporteur on racism, and UNESCO.
As Rashid Khalidi, whose own ancestors are buried in Mamilla, has said: We have exhausted all recourse inside Israel against this "grotesque" project.
The desecration of Mamilla is all about the violations of occupation. It is about the fact that Jerusalem was declared to be an international space under the 1947 UN Partition plan– "a corpus separatum"–but its religious independence has never been respected by the Israelis.
Finally, consider this: Over the last 40 years under its "Protection of Holy Sites Law," the Israeli Government has recognized 137 designated holy sites. ALL OF THEM ARE JEWISH. The U.S. State Department has protested this discrimination. "Non-Jewish holy sites do not enjoy legal protection under it because the government does not recognize them as official holy sites," the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report of 2009 stated.
Will this outrage pass? Will the LA Times give equal space to the petitioners to point out Hier’s falsehoods? Will the American Jewish community redeem itself from its blind support for a government that discriminates against an ethnic minority? To be continued…
Update, and my bad: The LA Times did run a piece by Saree Makdisi opposing the Museum of Tolerance (without countering the falsehoods in Hier’s account).
link to latimes.com
The LAT carried Makdisi’s opinion the same day, including his reference to Hier.
Just imagine if Ahmadinejad had demolished one of Jewish graveyard in Isran to build a Palestinian Holocaust Museum!
link to rehmat1.wordpress.com
Excellent rebuttal.
May I suggest building a library instead, ideally one with a section for dictionaries so that the word tolerance can be looked up by these ‘tolerant’ Israelis.
Is there an old Jewish cemetery in the West Bank? They should propose to build a museum called “Museum of Love and Neighborly Relations.”
This is one of the most egregious acts of Israel to date. This is desecration by a bizarre government that wants to erase the history of another race. It’s also an attempt to agitate and create greater conflict. Where the hell is Barry Hussein O. when all this is going down? Israel and it’s criminal gov’t will box themselves in further and make themselves more illegitimate than they already have already become.
The more they expand, the less legitimate they become. ~ a catch 22
It is very difficult to read stories like this and not come to the conclusion that there is a concerted and deliberate effort to erase the extensive and diverse religious and cultural history of Jerusalem (and historic Palestine at large) and replace it with a Judaic monoculture that makes all Zionist claims on the region to be a self-fulfilling prophecy. I thought that Makdisi’s connections to the displacement and disruption of Palestinian culture in 1948 was dead on. What disturbs me the most is the notion that this should be proposed for a “Museum of Tolerance”. I’m from LA and I’ve been to the Museum of Tolerance and I think it is a very valuable institution. I definitely have some issues with the Simon Wiesenthal center but still, I would have no qualms about the construction of such a site at any APPROPRIATE and REASONABLE site in Israel… there’s absolutely no other suitable location in Jerusalem they could find to put this building without displacing Palestinians in some shape or form? For that matter, why does it HAVE to be in Jerusalem? They couldn’t put in Tel Aviv, Haifa, etc.? All this just makes me more suspicious (and more dismayed) that this isn’t some ugly isolated affair but just an especially offensive example of a very wide-reaching and discriminatory Israeli policy of erasing Palestinian presence in their homeland, both current and historical.
It is very difficult to read stories like this and not come to the conclusion that there is a concerted and deliberate effort to erase the extensive and diverse religious and cultural history of Jerusalem (and historic Palestine at large) and replace it with a Judaic monoculture . . ..
Precisely. Desecration does not adequately describe what is going on. This is one in a series of steps in a conspiracy to cleanse Israel of its Arab identity. The other side of this coin is the dodgy archeaology used to paste together the mythical image of Eretz Israel.
I’m thinking of a word that starts with ‘g’.
For that matter, why does it HAVE to be in Jerusalem? They couldn’t put in Tel Aviv, Haifa, etc.?
Most sites used for propaganda purposes to garner international support and sympathy are located in Jerusalem. That way, when Olmert, or Peres or Netyahoo are hosting a foreign dignitary they can do Yad Vashem at 10:00, swing by the Western Wall around 10:35 for some butt kissing and a photo op, Lunch at King David around 11:25, followed by a visit to the “Museum of Tolerance” at 1:45.
By 3 pm the motorcade has already made its way down to Ben Gurion airport where the chump is seen off.
How else do you expect them to squeeze all that into their busy schedules? They’ve got houses to demolish, children to mow down, neighborhoods to level.
As usual, the default is to paint Israel and the Jews in a bad light. This issue is just another excuse. You might like to see how the Muslims related to this site whe nit suited them:
link to 1.bp.blogspot.com
From the Palestine Post, November 22, 1945
it is just ghastly to witness the incessant escalation of viciousness and ruthlessness by israel now that they are under real pressure after their Gaza massacre – any rational person would think they would take a step back, reassess and tone it down – but not the rabid zio-fascists – to them the pressure they finally feel is license for more violence, more unspeakable cruelty, more take-your-breath-away misconduct, more vulgar inhumanity …. baffling to anyone with an ounce of compassion for their fellow humans
Keep repeating the same negative conduct, expecting good fortune. We have a problem. Time for an interdiction by those who really care. But there’s nobody there, least of all Obama or the USA congress. Both feed the suicidal addiction. With friends like these, and AIPAC, I fear for both the USA and Israel.
Israel claims to build on the land of their ancestors, well in this case it’s clear they are building on the bones of someone elses ancestors.
This ancestral claim is so ridiculous. In the modern world you need a deed to lay claim to any parcel of land.
In the self-proclaimed Jewish state, nothing is holy or tolerated (except to the minimum extent needed for PR purposes to all Gentiles across the world) unless it is Jewish. Irony has no meaning. Neither live or dead Gentiles are of any importance at all–only the Jewish narrative of history is allowed. Is this a recipe for healthy chicken soup?
If they desecrate the graveyard, perhaps the spirit of Saladin will return
to wreak havoc on the Israel.
On this topic Democracy NOW recently did an excellent interview with Rashid Khalidi and Michael Ratner (vs the end of that episode). Khalidi’s is one of the petitioning families protesting the construction – I think his ancestors are among the buried in the cemetery.
The word is before the SWC moved in this was the premiere place for getting drugs and prostitutes in Jerusalem. Where was the outcry then?
RE: “this was the premiere place for getting drugs and prostitutes in Jerusalem.” – yonira
MY QUESTION: Who was getting the drugs? Who was using the prostitutes? Why did the government allow this to go on? Why wasn’t a Jewish cemetery used for these activities?
i can’t believe you fall for this crap dickerson. big sucker. lol.
Dickerson- Gan Ha’atzmaut or Independence Park, which is adjacent to the cemetery was the location of said drug purchases and prostitute procurement. The location is quite near the center of town. There are no Jewish cemeteries near the center of town.
not according to jewlisious’s post about israel’s $1 billion sex trade industry wondering jew. they claim in jerusalem most of the trade operates out of clubs and private apartments, ‘health clubs’ the street prostitution operate out of tel aviv.
jerusalem.com (tourism) describes..
Independence Park (Gan Ha’atzmaut)
..an enormous plot of useful land in the city center, right next to the business district, as a public park for the enjoyment of all Jerusalem’s citizens. Thus was founded Gan Ha’atzmaut (Independence Park), a vast expanse of rarely seen grass and rolling hillocks in the heart of Jerusalem.
The park, bounded by Agron Street, King George Street, Hillel Street and Menashe Ben Yisrael Street, serves as a meeting and relaxation place for Jerusalemites of all stripes, and it sees use all through the day and night (at night, however, it is probably best avoided, like most large, poorly-lit parks).
City events are often held in the park, including concerts (the Student Day shows draw thousands) and rallies (including the Jerusalem Open House’s gay pride rallies). On a sunny day, it’s the perfect spot for a picnic or an outdoor lunch brought from one of the many nearby restaurants.
if you and yonira want to peddle this idea the ‘ heart of jerusalem’ is best known for drugs and prostitution..provide a source. so far a google search for Gan Ha’atzmaut or Independence Park/prostitution only lead right here. to this site. thanks to you and yonira. lol.
I don’t know yonira, even if that was true did they dig beneath the ground and put the drugs between the legs of 12th century bodily remains, you little prick!!?? Did they dig up the graves to have sex with prostitutes among the bones?! If it was not protected whose fault is that? Do you want to know, little shitty Zionists like you prevented not only protection of the grounds, but have no difficulty desecrating the gave site. Spitting while passing the cemeteries of the Palestinians is disgusting, but digging them up to continue the genocidal process of removing their footprint is absolutely intolerable. However, there is difference between your contribution here and elsewhere on this site yonira, it is no surprise, I am glad that you are totally out in the open now.
‘The word’? whose word? source? do mean ‘your word’? lol. if this was such a ‘premiere place’ in the heart of the holy land for the dregs of society one would imagine there would be some documentation to support this outlandish comment. cough it up bug shot.
amend..i meant ‘big shot’..actually i really meant big mouth starting rumors.. gossipers.
yonira – as always spreading your bile and poison – you are a vivid example of what modern zionism is about and it is an ugly thing indeed
Kinda like Palestine, no one gave a shit about it until the Jews came in, then it become the biggest issue in the world.
Right. And all those Crusades were fought for control of Ahmed’s hummus stand in Damascus.
Actually what Yonira is basically acknowledging is that European Zionists came and colonized the region in the 20th century and that all that nonsense about the Kingdom of this guy and the Kingdom of that guy from the Euphrates to the Mississippi River as far back as 70 AD is pure crap that doesn’t even come close to a land deed.
It’s nice when the truth slips out once in a while, eh?
yeah, no one gave a crap about the holy land til zionists appeared on the scene to rescue the place.
If you look at the history, you see that the Hebrew kingdoms only had independent control of the region for a couple hundred years, basically when the great empires were weak or distracted. The Levant was a province of Egypt or it was a province of the Babylon-and-successor empires, or it was the road that the big armies used to march up and down to attack each other.
Before the Macedonians, the region was important because it stood between the big powers. After the Romans, it was important because it held religious value for Christians and, later, Muslims. What nobody ever gave a damn about were the Hebrews.
better start caring now Potsherd, we are there to stay now.
Hey douchebag, he wasn’t saying ‘throw the Jews into the sea’.
Moron.
Another thing you would learn from history, if you knew any, is that nothing lasts. Israel will die because its various factions will turn on each other in their fanaticism, and any remaining sane people will rush to the exits to escape.
you mean like that shit-head @ Oxford?
douche-nozzle
we are there to stay now.
Careful. Those self-proclaimed thousand-year reichs usually don’t last long.
with remains going back to the great general of the Crusades, Salah-ah-Din.
Well, let’s be rational here. If sites like this one with their historical remains dating back at least a thousand years, how else can Israel claim that “Jerusalem has been under the continued control of Judaism since 147,000,000 BC”?
“MICHAEL RATNER: Sacred sites—and discrimination. And when you look at the numbers—Israel has an obligation, as it admits, to protect sacred sites in Jerusalem. And what have they protected? Up ’til 2008—and I think probably the same figure—they protected 136 Jewish sites. Not one Muslim site.
RASHID KHALIDI: Or Christian site.
MICHAEL RATNER: Or Christian site.”
(from DemocracyNow interview)
So, that’s how Israel shares the same values as its enabler, the USA?
And it just keeps going on like the Duracell battery bunny and expanding Israeli settlements–despite official US policy against it:
Phil:
“… the Israeli Government has recognized 137 designated holy sites. ALL OF THEM ARE JEWISH. The U.S. State Department has protested this discrimination. “Non-Jewish holy sites do not enjoy legal protection under it because the government does not recognize them as official holy sites,” the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report of 2009 stated.”
This news never seems to make the MSM across the USA, you know, especially out in the Christian heartland. Imagine the outrage that would swell up if it did, from the children of the corn.
That’s right Citizen, the only nonsense they hear about the “holy land” in regard to Christians are the lies that the Muslims are driving out Christians, told by the Israelis. When this is not the case at all –
ISRAEL’S PURGING OF PALESTINIAN CHRISTIANS
iirc, Israel has never allowed a mosque to be built, or any former mosques to be reopened.
According to Norman Finkelstein, “With wife and son on the payroll, Rabbi Marvin Hier runs the Simon Wiesenthal Center as a family business; together the Hiers drew a salary of $520,000 in 1995″.
Not long after that, when the Swiss bank were being black-mailed for $1.2 billion, Hier alleged that they’d incarcerated refugee Jews in “slave-labor camps.” The Swiss, a fraction of the size of the US, actually took in and settled a similar number of refugees, around 20,000.
Just more information to go down the memory hole.
If you will pardon the religiously mixed metaphor, for assimilated American Jews, Rabbi Martin Hier is a heavy cross to bear. He’s the Elmer Gantry of American Judaism, except more mercenary and nowhere near as good looking as Burt Lancaster.