WIESENTHAL CENTER BREAKS GROUND....ON MUSLIM CEMETERY?

Jerusalem excavation ignites furor (LA TIMES)

JERUSALEM — When workers broke ground on the $200-million Museum of Tolerance on the edge of Independence Park, they unearthed what bulldozers often dig up in a city whose history dates back 3,000 years: the bones of the dead.  In this case, the site in downtown Jerusalem proved to be partially over a historic Muslim cemetery that Arabs say holds the remains of not just their grandparents, but associates of the prophet Muhammad from the 7th century. The resulting uproar has placed the Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center's expansive new monument to "human dignity" in the center of a historical imbroglio in the city where three religions intersect.

Lawyers for two Muslim and human rights organizations Wednesday asked Israel's Supreme Court to block the project, which they said displays a disrespect at odds with the planned museum's mission to promote coexistence of ethnicities and religions.  "They have started these last few days digging up the graves of the people buried there and putting the bones of the dead in boxes and taking them away. And we wonder why they call this complex they want to build there a Museum of Tolerance?" said Sheik Raed Salah, an Israeli Arab who is head of the Islamic Movement. "What kind of tolerance is this, at the expense of the dead of another people?" he said.

Officials with the Simon Wiesenthal Center say they will abide by the court's ruling, which is expected soon, and say they are eager to work out an appropriate resolution to alleviate concerns. They said the property was most recently used as a parking lot. "At no time did the government of Israel or the municipality designate this as a cemetery. If they would have, of course, we would have rejected it out of hand. It would be preposterous," said Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean and founder of the Wiesenthal Center. "We want to express goodwill. We believe that if you are a Museum of Tolerance, you have to have respect for those whose ancestors may have been buried at that site. But we acted lawfully," the rabbi said.