Maariv – Adapted

 

Recently, discussions on providing Saudi Arabia a spot in the Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa or as a replacement for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan have started in Israel. This is because it seems likely that we will soon have a normalization deal with Saudi Arabia, and giving the Kingdom a particular spot would be a reasonable price to pay for the "desired peace."

From a realistic perspective of the Muslim world of today, Israel must fully respond to every Saudi Arabian attempt to obtain a position in Al-Quds for a number of reasons:

1. "Al-Quds is the capital of Israel, and the Temple place has been the major interest of the Jewish people since the reigns of David and Suleiman, or more than 1600 years ago." Muslims view any loss of Jewish sovereignty over where the Temple is located as a rejection of all of Judaism and a threat to Israel's very existence.

2. Israel made numerous mistakes regarding Al-Quds. First, when Moshe Dayan turned over his administration to the Al-Quds Waqf in 1967 as part of an agreement with them, in exchange they did not object to unauthorized nighttime excavations. Second, when they granted Jordan a location in Jerusalem in 1994, assuming it would be taken away the POL and eagerness, but that didn't occur.

3. Jerusalem is the epicenter of Turkish anti-Israel conspiracy, and Saudi Arabia's presence there will exacerbate tensions between the two countries and harm ties between Israel and Turkey.

4. If Saudi Arabia is granted a spot in Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa, Iran may use this as leverage to force Saudi Arabia to support Shia activity in Jerusalem.

For all these reasons, Saudi Arabia is forbidden from visiting Jerusalem due to all of these factors. The exact opposite is needed: efforts must be made to drive out all Islamic participants and restore Jewish control over the "Jewish people's holiest of sites."