Author:
Publication: zenit.org
Date: November 14, 2001
Custody of Holy Land Warns Israelis
of a "State of Permanent Siege"
Jerusalem, Nov. 14, 2001 Excavation
began this week for the foundation of what will be a mosque in front of
the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, triggering a protest from
the Catholic Church.
In an official statement, the Custody
of the Holy Land deplored the authorization given by the government to
this project and called for the immediate withdrawal of the building permit.
The statement, signed by Franciscan
Father David-Maria A. Jaeger and distributed by the Vatican agency Fides,
reads: "This activity is taking place in total disregard of the oft-expressed
feelings and pleas of the worldwide Christian community."
The text emphasizes that not only
Christian leaders worldwide have repeatedly requested the Israeli government
to prohibit the construction of the mosque. This position has also been
adopted by Muslim representatives such as Palestinian President Yasser
Arafat and Imam Hussein Tantawi, the Egyptian sheik of al-Azhar.
In fact, the mosque is not a necessity
for the Muslim community of Nazareth, which already has places of worship,
but rather the project of a local fundamentalist group.
On April 4, 1999, while Catholics
celebrated Easter and Orthodox observed Palm Sunday in the Basilica of
the Annunciation, members of the fundamentalist group attacked and wounded
Christians. Since 1998, the fundamentalists have committed other offenses,
including the destruction of stores.
The Custody of the Holy Land states
that the "Israeli courts have already decided that the land is state land
and that the extremists' demands are groundless. Nonetheless, the government
itself has decided to give it to them."
"Building the mosque here will in
effect put this holy place in a state of permanent siege and make its gate
a gathering place for the most hostile elements," the statement warns.
"Problems underlined often by the
Custody, but with no response," Father Jaeger added.
"It is difficult to escape the suspicion
that what we are now seeing is a cynical attempt to exploit the present
international situation, as well as the dramatic conditions elsewhere in
the Holy Land, in order to carry out, almost by stealth, this harmful plan,"
the Franciscan concluded.
Nazareth, a city inhabited by Muslims
and Christians, is located in Israeli territory.
