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Temple Mount: Temple Mount Compound
built 628 days ago
The Waqf, the Muslim religious trust that controls the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem, has begun digging a major trench on the north end of the complex, which was the ancient site of the Jewish Temples. Begun in July 2007 to accommodate electrical and plumbing infrastructure, the trench was greatly extended in late August.
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The Temple Mount compound has remained a focal point for Jewish services over the millennia. Prayers for a return to Jerusalem have been uttered by Jews since the Second Temple was destroyed, according to Jewish tradition. Jews worldwide pray facing toward the Western Wall, a portion of an outer courtyard of the Temple left intact.
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In today’s polarized world, it seems everything and anything having to do with the Temple Mount causes controversy. When Israel opened a tunnel alongside the compound in 1996, it sparked clashes that killed 80 people. In 2000, before being elected Israel’s Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount. His visit provoked riots among Israel’s Arab population and is seen as one of several key events that triggered the start of the second Intifada (Arab word for “uprising”).
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Temple Mount is sacred to Jews as the site of the First and Second Temples (the temples of Solomon and Herod the Great) and to Christians as the mountain where Jesus of Nazareth preached. Judaism maintains that the Temple Mount will be the place where the Messiah will come. Many Christians share that belief with respect to Jesus. Today the compound contains the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third-holiest site after Mecca and Medina, because it is believed to be the place where Muhammad ascended into heaven.
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In a letter to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the Committee Against the Destruction of Antiquities on the Temple Mount said new plans by Islamic authorities to ?renovate? an ancient tower adjacent to the compound are part of long-running efforts to turn the holy site into a mega-mosque.
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Under a police guard, an Israeli bulldozer was digging to build a new walkway up to the hilltop compound in Jerusalem's Old City known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. Islamic tradition says that's where Muhammad ascended to heaven. Jews revere it as the site of their two ancient temples. Palestinians and Israelis have clashed at the hilltop in the past.
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Temple Mount Compound