Fatah’s Prime Minister: We’ll Fight Israel’s ‘Judaization’
Rami Hamdallah threatens Israel against “Judaizing” Jerusalem, promises to “resist occupation”.
Less than a week after being allowed by Israel to pray on the Temple Mount, the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) Prime Minister, Rami Hamdallah, on Monday threatened Israel against “Judaizing” Jerusalem.
Speaking in Hevron, Hamdallah said that the PA government will provide assistance to Palestinian Arab farmers and “protect their land against Israel’s settlement activities.”
Hamdallah added that the PA will not allow Israel’s land expropriation, Judaization of Jerusalem and the removal of the Arab character.
He further said that the PA’s policy will continue to be based on strengthening its presence in “the territory of the Palestinian people” and on its ability to resist the “occupation.”
In addition, Hamadallah expressed his commitment to promoting the rehabilitation of Gaza, called on donor countries to speed up the transfer of funds that were promised at the recent donors’ conference in Cairo, and said that the PA seeks to enlist the support of world public opinion in lifting the “siege” on Gaza.
The remarks by Hamdallah reflect the PA’s policy of accusing Israel of “Judaizing” Jerusalem. In a meeting with Pope Francis in May, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas insisted that Israel is “systematically acting to change [Jerusalem’s] identity and character, and strangling the Palestinians, both Christians and Muslims, with the aim of pushing them out.”
Meanwhile, despite the PA’s claims of “Judaization”, particularly on the Temple Mount, it is in fact Jews who are being discriminated against.
The Jordanian Waqf keeps an iron fist on the Temple Mount and its activities; Jews face constant discrimination and violence for visiting the site, and there is a blanket ban on Jewish prayer there.
Muslims and Christians, however, have free reign to worship at and visit the Mount.
