The Battle for Jerusalem

22 Nisan 5773
7 days or 1 week of the Omer

The battle for Jerusalem is at the center of everything at the end of days.  Obama pays Abbas and King Abdullah II a visit while in Israel just before Passover and a week later, together they do a little end-run around Netanyahu.  Or do they?  More chillingly, was the PM complicit???

Palestinians kick off Jerusalem bid by ceding Holy Sites Custodianship to Jordan’s king

...Its importance lies in that the Palestinian Authority has taken the historically momentous step of ceding to the Hashemite throne the custodianship - religious, political, legal, and security - of the Muslim shrines on Temple Mount with authority over the Palestinian Waqf. 

It means that henceforth, instead of the Palestinian Authority, Israel will have to engage the Jordanian government in discussions of matters pertaining to Temple Mount, especially hyper-sensitive security arrangements.

...The Hashemite House comes out of the accord with Palestinian recognition for the first time as the Custodian of the Holy Places of Jerusalem, especially the Mosque of al Aqsa, a title which parallels the Saudi king’s traditional title as Guardian of the Holy Places to Islam in Mecca and Medina.

The degree of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s involvement in Jordanian-Palestinian accord is still to be determined and also whether Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Tzipi Livni (in charge of negotiations with the Palestinians) were privy to its substance.

In actuality, however, this is nothing new - the fact that the Arabs are trying to take control of Jerusalem and the fact that the US is behind them every step of the way.

King Abdullah and Abbas: Jointly Prevent Judaization of Jerusalem

On Sunday, March 31, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and the acting leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, signed an agreement to jointly defend Jerusalem “from Israeli Judaization attempts.”

...Jordan’s custodial role over holy sites in Jerusaelm is derived from Article 9 of the 1994 Jordanian Peace Treaty with Israel.

Contrary to the presentation by Abdullah and Abbas, the Peace Treaty, signed by King Hussein of Jordan and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, is between Israel and Jordan; the PA does not play a role. The “Washington Agreement,” which set out the understanding for the terms of the Treaty, requires Israel to acknowledge the custodial role of Jordan over “Muslim holy shrines in Jerusalem,” it does not require Israel to allow Jordan to prevent “Judaization” of the city. What it does require is for Jordan and Israel “to act together to promote interfaith relations among the three monotheistic religions.”