ON THE NEED TO RELINQUISH THE TEMPLE MOUNT TO THE MUSLIMS: My Right Word quotes from Hillel Halkin's article on the necessity of ceding the Temple Mount to the Muslims.

There is, however, one part of core Jerusalem that Israel will eventually have to give up to, namely, the Temple Mount, even though it is certainly a sacred Jewish site. Fortunately, though (at least in the eyes of all those who are not anxious to see the ancient temple restored and herds of animals led to it for daily sacrifice), it is also the site of the El-Aksa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, and felt even more strongly about by religious Muslims than it is by religious Jews. If Israel is ever to arrive at an understanding with the Muslim world, this will have to be one that places the Temple Mount — as it in any case is de facto even today — in Muslim hands.

Read My Right Word's rejoinder to Halkin.

Considering the history of the Muslim relationship to Jerusalem as documented by Daniel Pipes, Halkin's claim of the strength of Muslim feeling towards Jerusalem is questionable at best. Halkin may well be mistaking religious fervor for simple jealousy.

Technorati Tag: Israel and Jerusalem and Hillel Halkin.