How al-Aqsa Mosque Became a Refugee from Jerusalem
by Paul Larudee
Saturday, October 6th, 2012
Once upon a time, some people wanted to destroy al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. So the mosque asked its friends, “Will you help save al-Aqsa?” We’re over a thousand years old and need your help.
“Not us,” said the Palestinians still living in Jerusalem. “We’re trying to keep our own houses and land.”
“Not us,” said the Palestinians with Israeli citizenship. “We’re already a persecuted minority in Israel.”
“Not us,” said the West Bank Palestinians. “We’re trying to save what we still have.”
“Not us,” said the Gaza residents. “We don’t want another Israeli pogrom.”
“Not us,” said the Palestinian Muslims. “We don’t want to be called terrorists.”
“Not us,” said the Palestinian Christians. “Our churches are being defaced and burned by the same people. We have our own problems.”
“Not us,” said the NGOs. “We only provide social services.”
“Not us,” said the diaspora Palestinians. “We have a hard enough time keeping people from noticing that we’re Palestinian.”
“Not us,” said the Western liberals. “We’re more concerned about keeping anti-Semites out of the movement.”
“Not us,” said the Western churches. “We have to keep good relations with our Jewish brothers and sisters.”
“Not us,” said the Arabs. “We’re busy with our own liberation movements.”
“Not us,” said the Muslim communities in non-Muslim countries. “We want our countries to think of us as good citizens.”
“Not us,” said the Muslims in Muslim countries. “We will denounce your persecutors but remain good Muslims by fasting, praying, doing pilgrimage, giving to the poor and declaring our faith, not by defending you.”
“Not us,” said the rest of the world. “We have to atone for the Holocaust.”
So al-Aqsa mosque waited for something to happen. And it did.
First, Israel expelled more than half of the people in Palestine and Jerusalem. Then Israel captured the rest of Palestine and Jerusalem. Then Israel began to expel more Muslim and Christian Palestinians. Then it began to prevent the remaining Palestinians from coming to Jerusalem.
Soon, fewer and fewer Palestinian Muslims could come to al-Aqsa and fewer Palestinian Christians to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. And Israel sent Jews to start using al-Aqsa as their own.
Finally, Israel said, “The al-Aqsa mosque is empty and this is now a Jewish community, thanks to our Judaisation program. We don’t need a mosque, so we’re going to demolish al-Aqsa and replace it with a nice new Jewish temple. We don’t want any harm to come to you, so please pack your things and leave now, along with the rest of the Palestinians.
And that is how al-Aqsa mosque became a refugee like other Palestinians.
Posted by Paul Larudee
on October 6, 2012. Filed under Palestine.
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12 Responses to How al-Aqsa Mosque Became a Refugee from Jerusalem
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who_me
October 6, 2012 at 5:14 am
inspired.
Paul Larudee
October 6, 2012 at 8:27 am
Thanks. Would be nice to think that it’s the last comment I get, but I think I managed to insult just about everyone on this post.
Alex
October 6, 2012 at 2:15 pm
“I think I managed to insult just about everyone on this post.”
You did
here an edited version insulting those who deseve it
“Not us,” said the Palestinians still living in Jerusalem. “We’re trying to keep our own houses and land.”“Not us,” said the Palestinians with Israeli citizenship. “We’re already a persecuted minority in Israel.”“Not us,” said the West Bank Palestinians. “We’re trying to save what we still have.”
“Not us,” said the Gaza residents. “We don’t want another Israeli pogrom.”
“Not us,” said the
Palestinian Muslims. (HAMAS) “We don’t want to be called terrorists.” (WE ARE TRYING TO SAVE OUR HAMSTAN BY RESITING THE RESITANCE)“Not us,” said the Palestinian Christians. “Our churches are being defaced and burned by the same people. We have our own problems.”
“Not us,” said the NGOs. “We only provide (REGIME CHANGE SERVICES) social services.”
“Not us,” said the (SOME) diaspora Palestinians. “We have a hard enough time keeping people from noticing that we’re Palestinian.”
“Not us,” said the Western liberals. “We’re more concerned about keeping anti-Semites out of the movement.”
“Not us,” said the Western churches. “We have to keep good relations with our Jewish brothers and sisters.”
“Not us,” said the
Arabs. (ARAB REGIMES) “We’re busy with our own liberation movements.” (OUR PRIORITY IS LBERATING SYRIA< LEBANON AND IRAQ)“Not us,” said the Muslim communities in non-Muslim countries. “We want our countries to think of us as good citizens.”
“Not us,” said the
Muslims inMuslim countries. “We will denounce your persecutors but remain good Muslims by fasting, praying, doing pilgrimage, giving to the poor and declaring our faith, not by defending you.”EDITOR’s NOTE
Paul Larudee
October 6, 2012 at 4:22 pm
I don’t exempt anyone from blame. They all want to protect their own interests. They put their their life, that of their family, their property and their community above that of liberating Palestine. And if they work for the liberation of Palestine, most of them make a career of one small corner of the effort.
Do I understand why they do it? Of course! But the result is that out of fear or self-interest we are not seeing millions of people doing what Palestinians did at Majdal Shams last year, because they are not willing to make the sacrifice.
The sacrifice is potentially very big, but the point is that not enough people are willing to make it, which leads to only one conclusion.
Alex
October 6, 2012 at 6:22 pm
“we are not seeing millions of people doing what Palestinians did at Majdal Shams last year, because they are not willing to make the sacrifice.”
I want to remind you that Palestinians who did what they did in Majdal Shams and also in maroun al-ras are proud diaspora Palestinians who had and still have hard time especially in Lebanon. They are the core of the palestinian cause.
I want also to remind you that Ben Gorion said the old will die and the young will forget. Although I was 18 months old when my parents left palestine in 1948 to Lebanon, I carried my cause and my children and grand children will do the same.
Do you want the Palestinians of Jerusalem to sell their home and land and live in the aqsa,
If you really belive that Palestinian of Jerusalem and Arab 48 are not defending Aqsa then tell me who did it since 1967?
I wonder if you ever heard about Aqsa Intifada.
BTW, every sqaure inch of Palastine is Aqsa.
Ariadna Theokopoulos
October 6, 2012 at 7:35 pm
I agree with you completely, Alex. I cannot think of any other people in modern history capable of the “soumud” Palestinians have shown. What in the world CAN they do?
It was the one thing that bothered me too in the otherwise laudable cry of frustration of this article.
Paul Larudee
October 8, 2012 at 11:34 am
Sumud ≠ liberation. It is necessary but not sufficient.
Paul Larudee
October 7, 2012 at 7:35 am
Alex,
This story is a simplification.
It is not about the handful or dozens or sometimes hundreds of Jerusalemites who throw stones at the invaders. It is about the two hundred thousand who do not.
It is not about the thousands of brave Palestinians and supporters in Syria who participated in the Majdal Shams resistance. It is about the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and millions of Syrians who did not.
This is not about the brave who are willing. It is about the others who are not willing. When the willing become more than the unwilling we will win. When the supporters of the willing themselves become the willing, we will win. When those who applaud become those who are applauded and there is no one left to do the applauding, we will win.
My complaint is not that there is nobody to defend al-Aqsa. It is that among those who want to defend al-Aqsa there are too few who are willing to do so themselves.
In 2006, during the invasion of Lebanon, I participated in a civil resistance action to enter the invasion area in the south in defiance of the invaders. Before we went, I met a man in a shop who, discovering that I was American, began to curse my government. I invited him to come with us. He accepted, but on the departure day, he came not only with his car but also with his wife. I asked how this happened.
He told me that when he told his wife that he was coming, she said, “You’re not going off to get yourself killed and leave me to raise our two-year-old daughter alone. Either we both go and leave my parents to raise our daughter or neither of us will go.”
If we can manage a few million more like that, working together in a unified action, we win. Until then, there are too many that fit the descriptions in my simple story.
Paul Larudee
October 8, 2012 at 11:51 am
Sorry, Alex, but if you really think that every Palestinian in Jerusalem and 48 is doing everything to resist, you are living in a dream world. All are making a sacrifice, but it is not necessarily a sacrifice of choice, nor are they making all the sacrifice they can. They are making the sacrifices that are forced on them, but no more. We all have our limits, me included.
My point is that the existing level of sacrifice is insufficient to liberate Palestine. The inspiring examples are still only examples, and need to be practiced more widely.
fool me once...
October 6, 2012 at 8:40 pm
Yeah, good comments Alex. It’s always stimulating and interesting what you have to say.
Blake
October 6, 2012 at 8:43 pm
Over on VT this article is credited to Gilad Atzmon.
Blake
October 6, 2012 at 8:47 pm
Apologies Paul. Gilad just put it on VT but credits you.
http://www.veteranstoday.com/2012/10/06/how-al-aqsa-mosque-became-a-refugee-from-jerusalem/