TEL AVIV (AP) – Israel’s chief rabbi has accused Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat of trying to inflame religious passions in an attempt to enlist millions of Muslims for his conflict with Israel. The rabbi, Israel Meir Lau, was reacting to reports that Arafat claimed at a closed-door meeting of information ministers of the Arab League that the Israeli government intends to build a Jewish temple in Jerusalem, on the site where the third holiest shrine of Islam now stands.
“Because he saw that the Palestinian cause is not receiving enough (Arab) support, and that Egypt and Jordan are not willing to sever their relations with Israel, he wants to ignite a conflagration throughout … the entire Muslim world, from Gibraltar to Karachi,” Lau said.
Arab League spokeswoman Hanan Ashrawi confirmed that Arafat made the accusation Wednesday, at a meeting of Arab information ministers in Cairo. “Of course, he was accusing the Israeli government. Part of it (the Jerusalem issue) has to do with holy sites,” she said.
Al Aqsa Mosque compound is known to Muslims as the Haram Al Sharif, or noble sanctuary. Jews and archaeologists call it the Temple Mount, claiming it is the site of the first and second Jewish temples.
A group of right-wing Israelis calling themselves the Temple Mount Faithful have made repeated attempts to enter the compound to pray or to lay a cornerstone for a third temple. All these attempts were blocked by the Israeli police.
The 10-month-old Palestinian uprising has had strong religious overtones. It erupted after a provocative visit last September by then-opposition leader Ariel Sharon to Al Aqsa compound. The tour was meant to demonstrate Israeli control over the site and set off widespread Palestinian protests.