Israel's very own tunnels of dread in Jerusalem

[Jefferson23]

9/6/2014

While everyone is preoccupied with the Hamas tunnels in Gaza, Israel continues to dig under Palestinian houses in Jerusalem. The excuses are questionable, residents are angry and fearful, and a religious conflagration appears imminent.

By Orly Noy

With the Hamas tunnels dominating the Israeli narrative for the past several weeks, their inherent danger horrifying the entire state and sometimes leading to apocalyptic visions, the state of Israel persistently continued digging its own underground tunnels – in Jerusalem.

These tunnels, like those of Hamas, are being dug under a heavy cloak of secrecy. As with the Hamas tunnels, they serve as a tool for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They are also being dug under the houses of uninvolved civilians, in this case Palestinians. However, while the Hamas tunnels are described as serving terrorist purposes, these tunnels have been authorized by the Supreme Court of Israel, and all the relevant arms of the state have been mobilized in their support.

What follows is a conversation with archaeologist Yonatan Mizrahi from Emek Shaveh, an organization that focuses on the role of archaeology in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, about what is going on underground in one of the world’s most volatile places, the historical heart of Jerusalem.

http://972mag.com/israels-very-own-tunnels-of-dread-in-jerusalem/96362/

[oberliner]

1. Leave it to 972mag to compare archaeological excavations to attempted kidnapping and murder

They have truly long since crossed over into a parody of themselves over there.

[Jefferson23]

2. They haven't, but thanks for stopping by. n/t

[oberliner]

3. "while the Hamas tunnels are described as serving terrorist purposes, these tunnels have been...."

That would be comparing the tunnels Hamas has created to try to kidnap and our kill Israelis to the Israeli tunnels that are being dug by the department of antiquities.

Here's an example from the article of the comparison being made:

"But the claim is that significant archaeological findings have been uncovered with the tunnels…

Well, I would like to tell you some things related to the Hamas tunnels. I think that the tunnels that the state of Israel is digging are much more sophisticated, in the sense that we have a ‘right’ to this place. We do not just dig to undermine political stability and possibly harm the other side; we dig based on our historical rights, respect for heritage, our interests, all these ‘enlightened arguments in the name of science!"

What exactly do you think the point of this article is if not to draw comparisons between the two tunnel digging enterprises?

[Jefferson23]

4. Oh please, because their purpose in Jerusalem is not egregious enough, they serve the greater good?

The answer would be, no. I find your responses to this publication, hilarious, while you claim to
be a proponent of a two state solution.

Does that mean that any finds that don’t fit the narrative that the excavations were designed to serve are then suppressed?

There are a few problems here. First, there have been almost no proper scientific publications on these excavations, despite this being a basic condition for the approval of an excavation. Often there are popular, unsatisfactory publications, and we rely mainly on these, although it is difficult to challenge them. And whatever the excavators say becomes a kind of narrative.

The digging of the Western Wall tunnels is an excellent example: Most of these excavations are below strata that are entirely Muslim, under Mamluk structures from the 14th and 15th centuries, and no one denies this. The question is what is presented and emphasized. Do you emphasize that big stone and its connection to the temple, or the multi-cultural complexity of the place? In general, I believe that there is more that is surreptitious than overt about these excavation activities, and I doubt that we’ll ever know.

The problematic professional aspect is one problem. Another much more worrying problem is the story of the Palestinian residents whose land is being excavated. The Palestinians have been protesting this for years and the state has dismissed their claims.

Yes, this is indeed the most amazing story. Actually, there are two aspects: One, the very fact of digging under the houses of residents – which brings me back to the story of the Jewish settlements around Gaza – and then there is also the political aspect, which is much more dangerous than the story of the Hamas tunnels, without belittling the fear of the residents [in Gaza border communities].

[Mao Shung]

5. religious conflagaration appears imminent

I don't know why the Palestinian side always predicts doom coming. They seem to regularly overestimate the chance.

[shaayecanaan]

7. Conflagaration indeed

I certainly wouldn't want to see anyone conflagarated, and certainly not spellers of the highest calibre such as you and "grossproffit".

[Israeli]

6. The architecture of violence .....

[Jefferson23]

8. That is very well done, thank you. n/t