Gulf News feature on Jerusalem filled with anti-Jewish lies

Gulf News created a slick, multimedia feature article about Jerusalem that is filled with absurd anti-Jewish lies.

Jerusalem was illegally annexed by Israel after it conquered the city in 1967. Almost 50 years later, the 350,000 Palestinian residents of Jerusalem still live under a brutal Israeli occupation that ignores their rights, and they have no realistic hope of any change.

They have every right to become Israeli citizens and enjoy the same rights as any other Israeli citizen. And many have done so.

The Israelis are strangling Jerusalem’s unique Arab culture which must rely on its own powerful heritage to give itself what strength it can find.

Um...no, they're not. Even the Israel Museum includes plenty about Muslim and Arab culture. Nothing is happening to jeopardize Muslim holy places.

Compare how a Muslim leader and a Christian leader refer to Jerusalem:

Former Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Shaikh Ekrima Sabri, agreed on the powerful spiritual importance of the city, when he told Gulf News that “Jerusalem is a spiritual and religious city. It is the site of the miracle of the Mi’raj which links Jerusalem to heaven and to Makkah”.

And Greek Orthodox Patriarch, Theophilos III of Jerusalem, also insisted that a formal inclusion of religion must be part of the eventual solution as he told Gulf News “We want Jerusalem to be a city for two peoples and three religions, and Jerusalem has enough room to accommodate everyone.

The only people who want to destroy the existing religious character of the city are the Muslims.

Al Buraq Wall
The foundation stones of the last Jewish temple built by Herod in 20 BC make up Al Buraq Wall, called the Western Wall or Kotel by the Jews. The temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70 and the huge stones visible today are the last remnants of the temple. As such they are a holy and venerated site for all Jews.

After 1967 when the Israelis captured the Old City, they bulldozed the houses nearby and forced the creation of the modern day plaza in front of the Wall. Al Haram Al Sharif is directly above Al Buraq Wall and the more extreme Jews believe that they have the right to intrude into Al Haram Al Sharif to prove their dominance over the Muslims. The Israeli police and authorities have permitted this activity despite it being illegal under international law.

Jews visiting their holy sites is actually protected under international law, not illegal.
Of course the article doesn't say that the Jewish Temples were on the Temple Mount.

In the chaotic days of 1,000 BC the Jewish tribes of Israel were split between the southern confederation of Judah based in Hebron, and the northern confederation of Israel based in Nablus. These two Jewish groups were divided by the pagan city of Jerusalem which was independent under its Jebusite rulers. King David reunited Israel and Judah but found it impossible to turn them into one nation until he conquered Jerusalem and established it as the new capital of the united Judah and Israel.

This is complete fiction. Judah and Israel were not separated in David's time.

The entire article is filled with similar falsehoods and exaggerations in an attempt to teach lies to their readers.

(h/t John G)