Amid a wave of deadly terrorist attacks and rioting triggered by the Muslim month of Ramadan, Palestinians in the city of Nablus vandalized and set fire to the tomb of the biblical prophet Joseph.
A Palestinian mob shattered the gravestone and destroyed sacred objects inside the tomb, the Israeli news reports over the weekend said. “Overnight Sunday, around 100 Palestinians broke into the site, rioted and smashed objects inside, and set it ablaze,” The Times of Israel reported.
On Monday, Palestinians continued their attack on the tomb of Joseph, a figure revered by Jews, Christians, and followers of other Abrahamic religions. “Videos shared on social media show a number of young men throwing stones inside the site,” The Jerusalem Post reported Monday.
The Israeli government vowed to bring the miscreants to justice. “We will not come to terms with such an attack, in a place that is sacred to us, and on the eve of Passover,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said. He promised to “find the perpetrators,” the newspaper Israel Hayom reported Monday.
The Israeli news website YnetNews reported the desecration of the biblical site by Palestinians:
Palestinians vandalized Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, one of the holiest sites in the Jewish religion, in an attack pre-dawn Sunday amid heightened security tensions in the area.About 100 Palestinians rioters stormed the site, shattering the tombstone and lit fire to rooms in the monument.Defense Minister Benny Gantz denounced the vandalization of the tomb, calling it “extremely serious”.”This is an assault on freedom of worship in one of the holiest places for every Jew, and to the Israeli people in general, especially during the holy Muslim holiday [Ramadan].”Israel will make sure to fix the monument, return it to its previous condition as soon as possible, and act with all means necessary, so that an event like this doesn’t happen again.”Gantz added that he “passed along a stern message to the Palestinian Authority that it must boost its forces at the site immediately, and act against the rioters and terrorists that harm the stability, safety, and the holy sites”.Head of the Shomron Regional Council Yossi Dagan was in close contact with security officials and criticized Israel for neglecting to properly protect the Jewish holy site.”This is an act that no Jew will not be appalled by. They ruined one of the holiest places for the Jewish people, only because the Israeli state left the place to ‘guardianship’ of the PA.”Dagan, in delineating the event, compared the Palestinians to Islamic State, and called on the IDF to take on the guardianship of the holy monument.”We’re horrified by the event and demand condemnation from all state officials. The IDF must return to the Joseph’s Tomb and guard the holy site.”
This is not the first time Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, a city administered by the Palestinian Authority in accordance with the 1993 Oslo Accord, has been targeted by the Palestinians. In recent years, Palestinian mobs have repeatedly attacked the sacred tomb and Jewish worshipers, who are allowed restricted access to one of their holiest sites.
The latest act of vandalism comes as Israeli security forces conduct counter-terrorism operations in Palestinian Authority-controlled areas. At least 14 people have been killed in a wave of terrorist attacks that began with the advent of Ramadan.
Several of the terrorists who carried out those attacks came from cities and towns under the control of the Palestinian Authority, particularly from Jenin and nearby areas. “Since March 22, the Jewish state has been hit by four major attacks, the first two perpetrated by Israeli Arabs linked to the jihadist organization Islamic State (IS) and the last two by Palestinians from the Jenin sector,” the Israeli news channel i24News noted Tuesday.
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