Wednesday, October 17, 2007

TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: I don't have time to follow all the ins and outs and spinoff discussions connected to the upcoming Annapolis summit, but I'll note relevant things as they happen to catch my eye.
'Likud could allow Muslim country to run Temple Mount'
By GIL HOFFMAN (Jerusalem Post)

The head of the Likud's foreign relations department, former ambassador to the US Zalman Shoval, joined calls Tuesday for compromises on Jerusalem when he told a meeting of the Foreign Press Association that his party could allow an Arab or Muslim country to administer the Temple Mount.

[...]

"The question of Israel's sovereignty in Jerusalem, and first and foremost the Temple Mount, is not negotiable," Shoval said. "That said, it is not in Israel's interest to be in any way in charge of the holy places other than [those of] the Jewish faith, and I believe that there are ways - actually there have been plans for a long time - to adopt suitable formulae to this end. Arab and Muslim countries, Jordan for instance, could play a leading role in this."

Shoval told The Jerusalem Post after the event that Israel could maintain sovereignty on the Temple Mount while allowing a country such as Jordan to administer the area. He said he would not rule out the Palestinian Authority running the Temple Mount if there were real peace.

[...]