With the recent brutal terror attacks striking Israel, fear of a Third Intifada is in the air. The Palestinians are using the excuse of Jewish “desecration” of the Temple Mount as the main reason to carry out terror attacks against Israelis.

During a recent interview between Rabbi Yehudah Glick, founder of the Temple Mount Heritage Foundation and Breaking Israel News, Glick stated, “I am willing to suspend Jewish access to the Temple Mount for two months in order to find a working solution to the unbearable Muslim harassment and violence constantly taking place.”

Arab riots and harassment of visitors on the Temple Mount have become common occurrences. Non-Muslims visitors as well as security forces are met with screams of “Allahu Akbar” (God is greater) as well as physical attacks with rocks, iron bars and firecrackers.  

“People think that Ariel Sharon walking on the Temple Mount in 2000 was the trigger for the Second Intifada,” Glick recalled. “The Arabs had long prepared the Second Intifada before Sharon’s visit. That was a convenient excuse for violence and even murder.”

As reported in the Hebrew language publication Makor Rishon, Arab MK Hanin Zoabi has declared that the Temple Mount should be free of Jews. She inaccurately stated that the name of the area is only al­-Aqsa and not the Temple Mount when, in fact, the sight is referred to in the Bible no less than 457 times.

“There is nothing there for Jews,” Zoabi told Makor Rishon. “It’s a place for Muslims only, according to all the agreements signed after the occupation of Jerusalem, and the agreements between Jordan and Israel. The Israelis understood that they occupied Jerusalem but are not allowed to occupy al­-Aqsa; now they are trying to occupy al­-Aqsa too.”

Zoabi is generating misinformation about the status of the Temple Mount. From 1948, Jordan controlled the Old City, forbidding Jewish access to the holy sites. During Israel’s Six-Day War in 1967, Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount, were liberated by Israeli forces.

At that time, a meeting was held between Moshe Dayan and Muslim religious authorities. This meeting emphasized that Jews have the right to visit the Temple Mount unobstructed and free of charge if they respect Muslim religious feelings. However, Jews were forbidden to pray there.  

Many objected to this agreement as the Temple Mount is Judaism’s most holy site. Freedom to pray on the Temple Mount symbolizes the return of the Jewish people to their homeland.

“The Temple Mount Heritage Foundation is working to assure that all religions are free to pray at the site. Historically, the Temple Mount was a place of peace for all nations. The Muslims have turned it into a place of war,” Glick stated.

Even with the Israeli Supreme Court ruling at least 19 times that the Temple Mount must be open for all denominations to visit and pray there, the Muslim Waqf continuously does not comply. The Israeli police and government have been weak in enforcing these rulings, claiming that prayer would lead to injury.

“We have turned the victims into the criminals,” explained Glick. “The criminals who must be stopped are the Muslims who scream at peaceful visitors, throw rocks and firebombs at police and worshipers and murder innocent Jews.”

Glick noted that the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron was a source of constant tensions between Arabs and Jews for decades. In 1996, the Wye River Accords were signed as part of the Arab-Israeli peace process. This included restricting access to parts of the massive building to both Jews and Muslims.

“A solution was found in Hebron that has worked relatively well for years,” Glick reflected. “There are separate entrances for Arabs and Jews and separate areas for prayer. If Muslims refuse to allow all denominations to worship on the Temple Mount peacefully, then perhaps we need to work out a similar agreement or a better one for this site. The Israeli government and an accepted and respected Muslim committee need to sit together and find a solution immediately before there is any more bloodshed.”

Knowing that his idea might sound radical to some, Glick pointed out, “This is a real offer to increase peace in Israel. I hope that the Arabs accept it. But, from our experience, the Arabs simply do not want non-Muslims in Israel. They use the Temple Mount as an excuse to kill us. If it weren’t the Temple Mount, they would find another reason to slaughter us.”

To emphasize his point, Glick reflected that, “When we were building Har Homa, [a city annexed after the Six-Day War, with a population of about 25,000, built on land in eastern Jerusalem] people were saying that this would lead to World War Three. We built a beautiful city and nothing happened. Let’s hope that a good resolution will happen quickly regarding the Temple Mount and that the only uprising will be that the Temple Mount is freely accessible to all people of peace.”