The Har HaBeit (Temple Mount) Quiz: Part 2 Answers

Breaking News:

10:48 pm Tuesday: Incoming missile sirens sound here in Ashdod. From our location in south Ashdod, we hear three explosions–one a likely Iron Dome intercept over our home. Your humble servant is writing this from our bomb shelter.

9:05 am Tuesday: Jewish women on the Temple Mount verbally attacked by Muslim member of the Israeli Knesset (click here to see video–note that you will have to twist your head to view).

6:45 am Monday: Palestinian terrorists attack police and Border Guards on the Temple Mount.

12:27 am Monday: IDF forces open fire on Palestinian terrorists attempting to place explosives along the Gaza border fence.

16 Tishrei 5776

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Israeli policemen, Border Guards, and IDF soldiers were wounded in an array of Palestinian attacks. A few examples: two policemen were wounded by”rocks” in the Old City of Jerusalem around 12 pm, and a Border Guard was wounded at the Majlis Gate at 1:53 pm.

Violent riots erupted at the Temple Mount all day, and of course, there were numerous “rock” throwing incidents in Judea and Samaria–such as at Marda at 5:00 pm yesterday afternoon. Other “rock” attacks occurred at the Tapuach Junction, Issawiya, and Tulkarm.

Palestinian arsonists set fire to the perimeter security fence at Adora near Hebron at around 4 pm. 

There were a number of attempted terrorist infiltrations from Palestinian Gaza into southern Israel yesterday: at 6:40 am, 4 Palestinian terrorists were captured along a road near the Gaza border, at 1:10 pm, 2 Palestinian terrorists were captured in the Eshkol region; at 4 pm, another 3 terrorists were captured in Eshkol.

**The good, the bad, and the ugly from President Obama’s speech at the UN General Assembly yesterday . . .

–>The good: for the first time in memory, Obama did not mention Israel or the Palestinians even once. Here in Israel, we always wait for the “Israeli shoe” to drop, but this time it didn’t. Of course, the Palestinians are seething with anger this morning at what they see as the American abandonment of the Palestinian cause.

–>The bad: the delusional Obama cannot see reality for what it is. To him everyone is a potential ally, a potential friend. One of his comments from yesterday:  “we see in our debates about America’s role in the world a notion of strength that is defined by opposition to old enemies, perceived adversaries, a rising China, or a resurgent Russia; a revolutionary Iran, or an Islam that is incompatible with peace.” The reality of course is that China, Russia, and Iran are enemies of the United States, and Islam is incompatible with peace.

–>The ugly: the delusional Obama is fixated on Iran. From yesterday: ” . . . Iran, which, as of this moment, continues to deploy violent proxies to advance its interests. These efforts may appear to give Iran leverage in disputes with neighbors, but they fuel sectarian conflict that endangers the entire region, and isolates Iran from the promise of trade and commerce. The Iranian people have a proud history, and are filled with extraordinary potential. But chanting “Death to America” does not create jobs, or make Iran more secure. If Iran chose a different path, that would be good for the security of the region, good for the Iranian people, and good for the world.”

Obama just doesn’t get it. Terrorist proxies such as Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen do give Iran leverage with its neighbors. Iran wants to fuel sectarian conflict to destabilize the Middle East. Iran is no longer isolated from the promise of trade and commerce. The Iranian populace, so full of “extraordinary potential” is more than happy to chant “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”  If Iran chose a different path, it would be good for the world, but Iran is delighted with the path that it is on.

**A new police chief for the country was nominated yesterday . . .

Roni Alsheich, the current Deputy Head of Shin Bet, has been tapped for the job. He still needs to be approved by de facto Prime Minister Yehuda Weinstein, but it looks like fairly clear sailing for a man who was a paratrooper commander, the Shin Bet Judea and Samaria division chief, and now the Deputy Head.

Alsheich is 52 years old, the father of seven, and the grandfather of seven. He lives in Givat Shmuel.

If Alsheich is approved, it will mean that the the head of Israel Police, the head of Shin Bet, and the head of the National Security Council (who is soon to be nominated to be the head of Mossad) are all religious Zionists. That is a sea change on the Israeli scene.

TODAY’S BLOG:

For the past three days, your humble servant has been testing your knowledge about the holiest place in Judaism, the Har HaBeit (Temple Mount) in the Old City of Jerusalem. Today, we have our final installment in this short series.

Let’s see how you did yesterday:

1. On what day during the 1967 War, did Israeli soldiers liberate the Old City of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount?

A. June 5

B. June 6

C. June 7

The answer is C.  Apparently (there are conflicting accounts) it was never the plan of the Israel government to take the Old City and the Temple Mount. According to Rabbi Shlomo Goren (see question below), it was he who persuaded Motta Gur to order his troops in saying that “how could Israel pass up the chance to regain the most sacred spot in Judaism?” When Gur protested that he didn’t have orders to do so and might end up court-martialed, Goren reportedly told him that they would both go to prison together. 

2. Who was the commander of the IDF paratroopers that took the Mount?

A. Yitzhak Rabin

B. Moshe Dayan

C. Motta Gur

As you can see from Question 1, the answer is C. Motta Gur. In the wake of the Six-Day War, Gur was not court-martialed; he became a national hero for liberating the Old City and the Temple Mount.

3. What was the commander’s famous exclamation upon taking the Temple Mount?

A. The Temple Mount is in our hands! The Temple Mount is in our hands!

B. After 2000 years, the Jewish people have returned to the Mount!

C. Never again! Never again will Jews be kept from Temple Mount!

The answer is A. 

4. Who was the Chief Rabbi of the IDF who urged the taking of the Temple Mount, accompanied the paratroopers as they took the Mount, supervised the placing of the Israeli flag above the Kipat HaSela (Dome of the Rock), and blew the shofar?

A. Rabbi David Lau

B. Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook

C. Rabbi Shlomo Goren

The answer is C. As stated above, Goren played a critical role in everything that happened on June 7, 1967, and in what happened on the Mount thereafter.

5. On June 17, 1967, just after the return of the Temple Mount to Israel for the first time in 1897 years, Moshe Dayan met with Muslim religious authorities and reformulated the status quo. Which of the following came out of that reformulation?

A. Religious sovereignty “was given” to the Muslims while overall sovereignty was “given” to Israel.

B.  Jews “were given” the right to visit the Mount but not to pray.

C.  Jews and Muslims formed a joint committee to handle future problems on the Mount.

The answers are A. and B. Many in Israel today hold Dayan responsible for the current fiasco on the Temple Mount. Why was he in such a rush to meet with Muslim religious authorities (the meeting took place on June 17–just 10 days after the taking of the Mount)? Why did he surrender religious sovereignty to the Muslims? According to one vein of thought, Dayan was a radically secular Jew for whom the Temple Mount meant little.

6. In 1976, the President of the Israel Supreme Court, Aharon Barak made an important ruling about the Temple Mount vis a vis the Israeli law guaranteeing religious freedom. What was his decision?

A. “The basic principle is that every Jew has a right to enter the Temple Mount. This is part of the religious freedom of worship; it is part of the freedom of expression. This freedom to worship at one’s holy places is enshrined in the laws of Israel and may not be abrogated. It is a universal human right.”

B. “The basic principle is that every Jew has the right to enter the Temple Mount, to pray there, and to have communion with his maker. This is part of the religious freedom of worship, it is part of the freedom of expression. However, as with every human right, it is not absolute, but a relative right.”

C. “The basic principles are that public order on the Temple Mount must be observed and the status quo must be maintained. All other freedoms such as freedom of religion and freedom of expression are of secondary importance. These principles are especially important in the conduct of government policy in Israel.”

The answer is B. Note that consistent with the Israel law guaranteeing freedom of worship, the ruling said that every Jew has the right to pray on the Mount. On the other hand, for Barak, the rights to enter, pray, and have communion with God were only “relative rights.”

7. In 1986, the Jewish Temple Mount Faithful group made an agreement with the police and the Islamic Wakf. How did this agreement change the status quo?

A. Jews were permitted to pray on the Temple Mount.

B. Jews were given the right to build a small synagogue on the Temple Mount.

C. Religious Jews were allowed to visit the Mount in “small organized groups.”

The answer is C. 

8. According to the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty, what is the “status quo” on the Temple Mount?

A. The Temple Mount is under Jordanian custodianship; however, Jews may enter the Mount but may not pray or conduct religious activities there.

B. The Temple Mount is entirely under the administrative supervision of the Jordanian Islamic Wakf which completely controls all visits of non-Muslims to the Mount.

C. Administrative control of the Temple Mount is under control of Jordan and the PLO (aka Palestinian Authority).

The answer is A. The important point is that Jordan and the Islamic Wakf do not have the right to control when Jews can go to the Mount and other features of Jewish behavior on the Mount (see the final two questions). Restrictions currently being placed on Jews are the result of Israel going along with Jordanian and Islamic Wakf demands. 

9. In 2000, the status quo again changed as the PLO and other Palestinian terrorists began the second intifada. What rights were taken away from non-Muslims–especially Jews?

A. Non-Muslims could no longer enter the Dome of the Rock.

B. Non-Muslims could no longer enter the Al-Aksa Mosque.

C. Non-Muslims could no longer visit the Islamic Museum on the Temple Mount.

The answers are A., B., and C. Remember that the Dome of the Rock, Kipat HaSela, contains the Foundation Stone on which sat the Ark of the Covenant during the time of the First Jewish Temple and thus was the site of the “Holy of Holies” for the First and Second Jewish Temples. As such, it is the holiest place in Judaism. From 1983-1988, your humble servant entered the Dome of the Rock each year along with hundreds of thousands of other Jews and non-Muslims.

10. By 2014, the status quo on the Mount once again changed, once again to the detriment of Jews. What changed?

A. The Jerusalem Police increasingly began to forbid Jews from visiting the Mount on Muslim holidays and on days of Muslim terror on the Mount.

B. Jews, Christians, and other non-Muslims could only go the Temple Mount from Sunday -Thursday, for four hours each day.

C. Visits of Jewish groups to the Mount were required to be accompanied by Islamic Wakf guards and policemen.

The answers are A., B., and C. Note again, that this was another dramatic change in the status quo. And a dramatic change to the status quo that was to complete detriment of non-Muslims, especially Jews.

11. When was the first time that Israeli police entered the Al-Aksa Mosque?

A. June 2, 2002, following a Palestinian “suicide/murder” attack in Jerusalem.

B. September 28, 2009, following an inflammatory Mahmoud Abbas speech at the United Nations.

C. November 5, 2014, following “rock” and Molotov firebomb attacks coming from the Mosque.

The answer is C. Throughout all the changes in the status quo, at least Israel has retained “overall sovereignty” over the Temple Mount–and overall sovereignty means security supervision. 

12. In 2014 and 2015, the status quo further changed with the establishment of the Murabitan (screaming Israeli-Arab men who are paid to assault Jews on the Mount) and the Marabitat (screaming Israeli-Arab women who do the same thing). Who established these groups?

A. King Abdullah of Jordan

B. Mahmoud Abbas of the PLO

C. Raed Salah of the Islamic Movement

The answer is C. Not only did Saleh establish these groups, he also began paying all of the Wakf policemen another $200 per month. In essence, the Islamists have carved out a major place for themselves on the Mount.

13. Despite the supposed status quo on the Mount, the Islamic Wakf has gained the right to employ 164 “security guards.” According to a recent announcement, that number will soon be increased to more than 200. Who pays the salaries of these so-called “security guards”?

A. The PLO

B. Jordan

C. A combination of the PLO, Jordan, and Qatar

The answer is B. Jordan pays the salaries, and the Islamic Movement supplements them.

14. Despite the supposed status quo on the Mount, which of the following are now prohibited by the Jerusalem Police/Islamic Wakf from being on the Temple Mount?

A. a kipa (yarmulke) worn on the head by Jewish men

B. Christian Bibles and Jewish Torahs

C. Israeli flags

The answers are A., B., and C. All items are prohibited. The only exception is that when religious Jews enter the Mount as a small group, they can wear their kipas. The Muslims of course regularly wave PLO, HAMAS, IS and other flags on the Mount, but the Israeli flag is strictly forbidden.

15. Which of the following actions are now forbidden to Jews by the Jerusalem Police/Islamic Wakf from taking place on the Temple Mount?

A. singing and dancing

B. praying

C. bringing bottles of water

The answers are A., B., and C. 

So what are the points that your humble servant would like for you to take away from this quiz:

1. Moshe Dayan’s giveaway of the Temple Mount was one of the sorriest episodes in the history of modern Israel.

2. The Israel Supreme Court, while affirming the right of Jews to go to the Mount and pray there, immediately undercut that right. In doing so, it undercut the Israeli law which is supposed to guarantee freedom of religion at all holy places.

3. When you hear PM Netanyahu talking about how “the status quo must not change on the Temple Mount”, think about how many times the status quo has changed since 1967. During the last 48 years, there has been a steady degradation of Jewish rights on the Temple Mount. The pattern has been: Jordan and the Islamic Wakf demand, and Israel accedes and surrenders.