Majadele protests Mugrabi Gate dig
Science, culture and sports minister sits out on ministerial meeting over fate of divisive archeological excavations, slams vote authorizing continuation of works while warning they may lead to debilitating tensions ahead of Annapolis summit
Science, Culture and Sport Minister Raleb Majadele filed an appeal to the government secretariat on Sunday demanding the immediate cessation of archeological excavations at the Mugrabi Gate in
Jerusalem.
Majadele's appeal follows the government's decision to allow the works to continue despite being contested by Muslims in Israel and worldwide.
"The Ministerial Committee's decision may lead to unnecessary clashes just as Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is leaving for the Annapolis peace conference," said Majadele.
Majadele sought to explain his absence from the crucial vote and wrote in his appeal that he was unable to attend the meeting due to a personal matter that could not be postponed.
"This matter is important to me and close to my heart. I kept close track of it even before being appointed minister overseeing the Antiquities Authority. The committee that convened without me did not have a single representative speaking on behalf of the Muslim community and groups involved with Muslim religious issues," the minister wrote.
"Due to the sensitive nature of the matter at hand and because we, as the government, do not wish to make important decisions without hearing the opinions of all relevant sides and without taking into account all the many considerations, I ask to appeal the committee's vote and bring the matter before the government for a renewed discussion."
Thousands of Muslims protested the works earlier in 2007 and asserted that Israel was trying to destroy the two nearby Muslim holy sites. Israel in response set up a website broadcasting live footage from the dig 24 hours a day to prove no damage was being done to any site.
In February, a UNESCO team of experts ruled that the Israeli dig near the Mugrabi Gate posed no risk to either the al-Aqsa Mosque or the Temple Mount.
