PALESTINIANS CONDEMN DICHTER VISIT TO HARAM

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 000088

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

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

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/16/2018
TAGS: KWBG PBTS IS KISL
SUBJECT: PALESTINIANS CONDEMN DICHTER VISIT TO HARAM
AL-SHARIF/TEMPLE MOUNT


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


1. (C) Islamic Waqf contacts confirmed that Israeli Public
Security Minister Avi Dichter (Kadima) visited the Haram
al-Sharif/Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City the morning of
January 15, escorted by dozens of Israeli police. In a
January 16 conversation, Azzam al-Khatib, chief of
Jerusalem's Islamic Waqf, said Dichter entered the compound
through Mughrabi Gate at 0745 loca. Al-Khatib called the
visit a provocation intended to bolster Israeli control over
the site and said the visit annoyed local Palestinians.
Shaykh Muhammad Hussayn, Mufti of Jerusalem and the PA,
complained that "the al-Aqsa Mosque should not be used as a
platform for Israeli ministers to prove their right-wing
credibility," and said the visit was provocative and hurts
the feelings of all Muslims. He warned that such visits
inflame tensions and can lead to violence, noting that Ariel
Sharon's September 2000 visit to the compound sparked the
second Intifadah.


2. (C) Hatim Abd al-Qadr, PM Salam Fayyad's Advisor for
Jerusalem Affairs, commented in a January 16 conversation
that the timing of Dichter's visit was intentionally aimed at
undermining the peace process and called for an end to such
visits. He said such visits provoke problems at a time when
all parties should direct their efforts toward creating a
positive environment for the peace process. He commented
that radicals in Israeli government and society are
determined to thwart peace efforts.

WALLES