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Solomon's Stables, under the surface on the Temple Mount, in its original condition
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| By israelinsider staff September 26, 2004 |
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The Israeli defense establishment fears the Solomon's Stables area on Jerusalem's Temple Mount will collapse under the weight of the expected 200,000 Muslim worshippers expected to arrive for Friday prayers during the month Ramadan, which starts in another three weeks, Israel Radio reported Sunday morning.
The foundations of the mosque at the site are known to be old and unstable. A combination of roofing work on the building and a recent earthquake has caused further deterioration in its structural condition. The Antiquities Authority said collapse of the building's roof and walls is almost a certainty.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has directed the security establishment to prepare to prevent a mass disaster. Israel has asked Jordan and the Wakf Muslim Religious Authority to block access to the roof of Solomon's Stables and to the eastern arches of the mosque. However, the Wakf denies that there is a danger of collapse and has described the fears as an Israeli plot to seize control of the various mosques in the Temple Mount compound.
If the Wakf does not agree to prevent access to the concerned areas, the police would consider using officers to block access. "The Jordanians understand the problem," interim Public Security Minister Gideon Ezra told Israel Radio on Sunday morning. "We won't have any choice but to reduce the number of worshippers on the Temple Mount during Ramadan.
Ezra denied any ulterior motive or desire to infringe on Muslim prayer. "We have no intention of preventing worshippers from getting to the Temple Mount. If there are [certain areas] blocked off that satisfy our requirements we would then be able to allow more worshippers to enter inside. We have no intention of preventing Muslims from coming to pray," he said.
In early September, the High Court of Justice issued a temporary injunction prohibiting Israeli authorities from authorizing the Wakf to remove from the Temple Mount tons of soil assumed to be rich in archaeological artifacts.
The soil had been excavated some four years ago during the construction of large gates to the underground mosque in the area known as Solomon's Stables. The injunction was issued at the request of the Committee to Prevent the Destruction of Antiquities on the Temple Mount.
According to the petition, "At the end of November 1999, the Wakf tricked the government of Israel, and under the pretext of opening an emergency exit to the Solomon's Stables mosque -- which had been built illegally and inaugurated in December of 1996 -- the Wakf took advantage of the negligence of the government of Israel and its indifference to the fate of the archaeological remains on the Temple Mount, dug a huge 2,000-square meter pit beneath the Temple Mount some 13 meters deep, and opened a main door to the Solomon's Stable mosque 10 meters wide and 13 meters high."
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