THE BATTLE FOR JERUSALEM

ISRAPUNDIT ^ | Mar 19/10 | Ted Belman

[tedbel]

The focus on settlements or the “occupation” has now taken a back seat to the focus on Jerusalem itself. It is understood by all that so goes Jerusalem, so goes the peace process.

Daniel Pipes in his well known 2001 article, The Muslim Claim to Jerusalem, asks

The city being of such evidently minor religious importance (to Islam), why does it now loom so large for Muslims, to the point that a Muslim Zionism seems to be in the making across the Muslim world? Why do Palestinian demonstrators take to the streets shouting “We will sacrifice our blood and souls for you, Jerusalem” and their brethren in Jordan yell “We sacrifice our blood and soul for Al-Aqsa”? Why does King Fahd of Saudi Arabia call on Muslim states to protect “the holy city [that] belongs to all Muslims across the world”? Why did two surveys of American Muslims find Jerusalem their most pressing foreign policy issue?

and answers simply

Because of politics. An historical survey shows that the stature of the city, and the emotions surrounding it, inevitably rises for Muslims when Jerusalem has political significance. Conversely, when the utility of Jerusalem expires, so does its status and the passions about it.

Ten years later the Muslim claim is getting traction.

Resolution 242 of the Security Council passed in the wake of the Six Day War made no mention of Jerusalem. Nevertheless when Israel annexed Jerusalem in ’67 the US, and most every other country, refused to recognize the annexation and has ever since.