It didn't take long for the Israeli authorities to reopen Haram Al-Sharif after they had closed it down following the shooting of a Jewish activist. Apparently, Israel took seriously the warning by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas that the closure would be “a declaration of war”. The closure at the site, which includes Al-Aqsa Mosque, was the first in 14 years. The holy site is important because it sits at the center of not just arguments and conflict in Jerusalem but at the very heart of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict altogether because sovereignty of that area defines what could be a two-state solution. Attempts by Israel to block off access to the holy site are inevitably attempts to assume sovereignty over the wider area of Jerusalem.
That is why it is such an explosive issue when it comes to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as a whole. An incensed Palestinian shot Yehuda Glick, an advocate of Jewish access to Muslim holy sites, which is currently prohibited. Jews are allowed to visit the site but not to pray there. However, Glick and his backers are determined to change the status quo that has governed Al-Aqsa since Israel seized the walled Old City in 1967. However, they should first think a thousand times. So fearful was Israel of triggering a holy war that it swiftly handed control of the compound back to the Islamic religious authorities. The rules state that Jordan's religious authorities are responsible for administering Al-Aqsa.
But when Glick and his supporters argued that Jews should have the right to pray at their holiest site, they were taking their cue from the Knesset which last week briefly discussed a proposal to that effect. Hardline lawmakers, many from the coalition government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, vow to place Al-Aqsa fully under Israeli sovereignty. Indeed, after Glick was shot, far-right Jewish groups urged supporters to march on Al-Aqsa. That could have started a conflagration in the region.
Any tampering with the status quo at the site is rejected. The site has been an exclusively Islamic holy place for more than 1,400 years. It belongs to Muslims. It has always belonged to Muslims. Muslims cannot accept Israeli efforts to steal or arrogate their rights. This is not a political matter; it is one of religious belief and faith. Just last year, Abbas and Jordan's King Abdullah reached an agreement affirming Jordanian jurisdiction over Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem. The two leaders also agreed that Jordanian administration of Haram Al-Sharif would continue “as a trust” until the end of the Israeli occupation.
Israel, however, makes it clear in words and deeds that it will not respect the agreement nor rein in fanatics; if anything, it abets them. When Israeli authorities permit Jewish fanatics to tour the area and hold their rituals in defiance of Muslim sensibilities which reject any Israeli encroachment at the Muslim sanctuary, they are spoiling for a fight. Israeli officials might think that the ongoing turbulence and instability in much of the Arab world constitute an opportune time to infiltrate Al-Aqsa Mosque. But Al-Aqsa, an integral part of each and every Muslim's belief, cannot be hijacked.
Imposing Israeli sovereignty at Haram Al-Sharif would be the ultimate breaker of everything. Nothing would survive this, neither the peace process nor peace treaties. Nothing. Al-Haram Al-Sharif is a potent historic symbol of identity and nationhood. The Israeli government, however, would prefer that it cemented Jews' bonds with their state rather than stoke Arab longing for a Palestinian nation which Israel never wants to see.
