Our Director, Rabbi David Saperstein, today issued a statement condemning recent incidents of Palestinian incitement, including Hamas leadership’s decision to name a Ramallah street in honor of suicide bomber Yihyeh Ayyash and remarks made by Fatah official Khatem Abd el-Kader in response to the rededication of the Hurva synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem. El-Kader called upon Palestinians to “converge on al Aksa to save it” from “Israeli attempts to destroy the mosque and replace it with the [Jewish] temple.”
“Such rhetoric questioning the legitimacy of Jewish ties to Jerusalem are provocative, hateful, and simply false,” Rabbi Saperstein said. “These recent incidents of Palestinian incitement against
Israel are reprehensible and counterproductive if the Palestinian
leadership wants to make progress on the increasingly difficult path
toward peace.”
He also welcomed the U.S. State Department’s call to Palestinian leadership to curb
incitement against Israel and to cease the glorification of terrorists.
Phillip Crowley, Assistant Secretary of the U.S. State Department’s Daily Briefing, yesterday said, “Remarks by the Palestinian ministry of information denying Jewish heritage in and links to Jerusalem undermine the trust and confidence needed for substantive and productive Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. We also strongly condemn the glorification of terrorists honoring terrorists who have murdered innocent civilians either by official statements or by the dedication of public places hurts peace efforts and must end. We will continue to hold Palestinian leaders accountable for incitement.”
Rabbi Saperstein’s full statement is available here.