PA "academic" denies Jewish connection to the Western Wall

From PMW Bulletins, Aug. 19, 2009, by Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook:

A Palestinian Authority university lecturer is the latest PA academic to rewrite history and deny Jewish history in Jerusalem - in particular, the Jewish people's connection to the Western Wall ...of the Jewish Temple.

Shamekh Alawneh, a lecturer in modern history at Al-Quds Open University, says the Jews invented the connection to the Wall for political purposes, to convince European Jews and Zionists to come to "Palestine."




The show's interviewer also refers to the "Judaization" of Jerusalem, and to Jewish plots to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Denying Jewish history in Jerusalem and the existence of the Jewish Temple is a central component of PA political ideology. This denial started with Yasser Arafat and continues to be reiterated by academics, politicians and religious leaders.

PA leaders systematically distort the ancient history of Jerusalem, ignoring the vast historical documentation and thousands of archeological finds related to Jewish history that have been found in Jerusalem...

Follow this link to read a transcript of the interview.

To view other examples of PA denials of Jewish history in Jerusalem and the existence of the Temple from the PMW archives, click here.