Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08JERUSALEM1616
2008-08-28 15:36:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Consulate Jerusalem
Cable title:  

JERUSALEM CONTACTS DISCUSS MUGHRABI GATE RAMP

Tags:  IS KISL KPAL KWBG PGOV PREL 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO0871
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #1616/01 2411536
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 281536Z AUG 08
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2645
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 001616 

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE. NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2017
TAGS: IS KISL KPAL KWBG PGOV PREL
SUBJECT: JERUSALEM CONTACTS DISCUSS MUGHRABI GATE RAMP

REF: A. AMMAN 02483

B. AMMAN 01483

C. JERUSALEM 00792

Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 001616

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE. NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2017
TAGS: IS KISL KPAL KWBG PGOV PREL
SUBJECT: JERUSALEM CONTACTS DISCUSS MUGHRABI GATE RAMP

REF: A. AMMAN 02483

B. AMMAN 01483

C. JERUSALEM 00792

Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary. Palestinian officials in press and
privately criticized alleged Israeli plans for the Mughrabi
Gate entrance to the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount. A Waqf
official said the Jerusalem District Committee's guidance for
construction is too ambiguous, and that unilateral Israeli
actions could ignite unrest among Palestinians. The
Jerusalem Municipality and attorney Danny Seideman told
PolOff that criticism of these plans is based on outdated
blueprints, and that the Jerusalem District Planning
Committee has changed guidance for the ramp plans in order to
preserve Muslim ruins. Construction of the new ramp will be
delayed by several months because of appeals to the National
Planning Committee. End summary.

PALESTINIAN CRITICISM
OF PLANS FOR NEW RAMP
--------------


2. (C) Recent Palestinian press stories reported criticism
by PA and Muslim religious officials of alleged Israeli plans
to build a synagogue on Ottoman ruins under the Mughrabi Gate
ramp leading to the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount in
Jerusalem's Old City. Palestinians also criticized the
UNESCO World Heritage Committee for accepting an Israeli
proposal for the new ramp. Among those who spoke out against
the plan were the Jerusalem Advisor to PM Fayyad, Hatim Abdal
Qadar, and Shaykh Ra'id Salah.


3. (C) Yusuf al-Natshah, Director of Tourism and Archeology
for the Waqf, in a conversation with PolOff on August 27,
said much of the criticism was based on outdated plans for
the ramp. However, he criticized the Jerusalem District
Planning Committee's revised plans as too ambiguous. Based
on the revised plan, he said, Israeli architects and builders
have room to replace Arab ruins with Jewish spaces. He
warned that, if the GoI undertakes unilateral work at the
Mughrabi Gate, it could spark an "unpredictable" reaction
from "angry" Palestinians, which would complicate
negotiations.


4. (C) Al-Natshah told PolOff the Waqf wants the new ramp to
follow the route of the old ramp as closely as possible, in
order to preserve the status quo. He said UNESCO plays a
weak role in the discussion over the ramp and cannot
successfully coordinate the project. He said he is concerned
that the GoI will portray Jordan and the Waqf as complicit in
unilateral GoI actions, which would undermine the Waqf's
credibility.

SEIDEMAN: CRITICISM BASED ON OUTDATED PLANS
--------------


5. (C) Jerusalem attorney Danny Seideman told PolOff August
13 that UNESCO did not accept the Israeli proposal carte
blanche, and that Palestinian criticism in the press is based
on earlier plans that included a Jewish prayer area under the
new ramp. Seideman, who presented objections to the original
blueprints on behalf of Jerusalem-based NGO Ir Amim, said the
District Planning Committee accepted most of those objections.


6. (C) Seideman told PolOff August 27 that the GoI has
become more transparent in the planning process, allowing him
and others to influence ramp plans. He said the National
Planning Committee has allowed at least one Palestinian group
to appeal ramp plans, though hearing appeals is not required
by law and could set construction of the ramp back by several
months to a year. Seideman said this will give all parties
more time to weigh in on the final ramp plan.

DISTRICT COMMITTEE ACCEPTED
OBJECTIONS, REWORKING RAMP PLANS
--------------


7. (C) Osnat Post, Head of the Jerusalem Municipal Planning
Division and a member of the District Planning Committee,
told PolOff August 27 that the District Planning Committee
issued a directive to redraft the ramp plans with guidance
that the new ramp not contain Jewish prayer spaces and must
preserve archeological remains under the ramp from a range of
historic periods. She said claims to the contrary are based
on incorrect information.


8. (C) Note: ConGen confirmed, using an OSC-translated
summary of the District Committee's report, that the

JERUSALEM 00001616 002 OF 002


Committee's guidance for designing the ramp states that
"preservation of findings from all historical periods shall
be ensured" and adds that "there is no room to enable...using
spaces that have not yet been opened for prayer purposes."
The report also says the proposed ramp route should be
"related to the original route" and the ramp "is expected to
serve as a main passage for the security forces, should the
need arise." For the full text of the OSC translation, see
the ConGen's classified website at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/jerusalem/ind ex.cfm and click
on the link for Political Reporting Attachments. End note.)


WALLES