By Hillel Fendel and Chaim Silberstein, www.KeepJerusalem.org
Some things never change. In honor of the 32nd anniversary of its first murderous terrorist attack, the Islamic Jihad terrorist gang has released a statement of its principles. The gist of it is that Jerusalem will remain theirs forever, no matter what the cost.
Islamic Jihad (IJ) says it will continue to oppose any Israeli initiatives to end the conflict between Israel and the Arabs of Judea, Samaria, and Gaza. It festive manifesto further insists that “Jerusalem will remain forever the eternal capital of Palestine, and we will never give up any part of the city, no matter the cost or the amount of dead we have to sacrifice.”
Let alone “eternal capital;” Jerusalem was never an Arab capital for even a day in its long history! As we have explained several times in this column over the years, yet must reiterate until the message has been spread far and wide, Jerusalem has no religious significance in Islam – and its political significance is on a “use and dispose” basis.
Islamic Trash on the Temple Mount
Yes, there is a world-famous gold-dome mosque on the Temple Mount, known as the Dome of the Rock. But the Arabic inscriptions that so impressively adorn it, courtesy of Salah a-Din and other Islamic conquerors, make no mention of Jerusalem per se, but only the triumphant refurbishing of the dome. And as is known, the holy city is not mentioned directly even once in the entire Quran! Not only do young Arabs play soccer on the holy site, just last week Jewish visitors filmed a PA garbage truck emptying its contents there – precisely at the spot where stood the Ezrat Nashim [lit., Women’s Section] when the Holy Temple was extant.
Imagine the Jews, citing Moses and the Old Testament, claiming that Moscow or New York is its “eternal holy city” and that they will never abandon their goal of rendering it its everlasting capital! Such an assertion has as much validity as the Islamic claim to Jerusalem.
And as far as Islam’s political ties with Jerusalem go, suffice it to recall how one bright 7th-century day, Muhammed claimed Jerusalem’s sanctity, then immediately withdrew this status when the Jews refused to go along with him. Instead, he murdered them and announced that prayers would be thereafter directed towards Mecca.
What is this Islamic Jihad gang about, then? Also known as Palestinian Islamic Jihad, it was formed in Gaza in 1981 with the stated objective of destroying Israel and replacing it with an Islamic Palestinian state. Two of its founders, Ramadan Abdullah Shallah and and Abdel Aziz Awda, are wanted by the FBI for their role in conducting IJ’s terrorist activities. Many Western countries deem the Jihad a terrorist organization.
It’s true that over the past decade, Islamic Jihad has barely succeeded in murdering Jews – but it has perpetrated some of the most horrific terrorist attacks suffered by Israel in recent years. Among them were the 1989 commandeering of an Egged bus and driving it over a cliff near Telz Stone, killing 16; a bombing near Netanya in January 1995, in which 18 soldiers and one civilian were murdered; a double bombing in Gush Katif in April 1995, murdering eight, including student Alisa Flatow; a suicide bombing on Jerusalem bus #2 in August 2003 on its way to the Western Wall, claiming 21 lives; and many more.
Its most recent offensive was in May of this year, when IJ and Hamas together launched nearly 700 rockets into Israel over the course of three days, killing four Israeli civilians and wounding over 200. In response to the Islamic rockets, Israel air-bombed more than 350 Gaza targets, in what became the most violent conflict between Israel and Gaza in five years.
Israel has been able over the years to target and kill many Islamic Jihad leaders in pinpoint attacks, including founder Fathi Shkaki, Mahmoud Tawalbe and Ziad Abu-Tir. Most recently, this past May, Israel targeted and killed Hamed Ahmed al-Khodary, who had been involved in funneling Iranian money to the IJ and Hamas.
Iran’s Sinister Role
When Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu speaks of the great danger posed by Iran, he is not referring only to the country’s nuclear ambitions. He means also the terrorist bodies that Iran has supported and continues to fund all over the Middle East, and not only against Israel. These include Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Hizbullah, and Al-Qaeda, as well as insurgent groups in Albania, Yemen, and elsewhere.
The many thousands of rockets and missiles ready to be fired at Israel from both Gaza and Lebanon are largely due to Iranian funding and support. In Gaza, Iran pays hundreds of millions of dollars annually in general assistance; in addition, it paid out $650,000 this year to Arab families of those killed in the armed conflict with Israel. “We will continue supporting resistance, especially in occupied Palestine,” said Ali Shamkhani, secretary-general of Iran’s National Security Council.
In Lebanon, Iranian support for Hizbullah – the terrorist group that partially governs Lebanon – has reached the point where the U.S. Trump administration has imposed sanctions upon it. Hizbullah was actually established by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard in 1982, and now has tens of thousands of missiles that, it claims, can reach any point in Israel.
But in truth, everything begins and ends with Jerusalem – and the Muslims know this as well. Record numbers of tourists continue to visit Yerushalayim, record numbers of Jews and others visit the Temple Mount, and in general the city is so profusely flourishing that even the majority of Arabs in the area prefer to be registered as residents of Israel and not the Palestinian Authority. With hard work, faith, courage and optimism, our festive “Next year in Jerusalem!” prayers will outlast their fanatic zeal to kill, and die, and kill some more, simply to destroy the success that is the Jewish State, Israel.
To help advocate for keeping Jerusalem united under Israeli sovereignty, KeepJerusalem recommends you visit the Holy City, send e-mail to <info@keepjerusalem.org> to find out about our bus tours in news-making areas of the capital.