PA ARABS SET FIRE TO JOSEPH'S TOMB; LATER CLAIM HE WAS A MUSLIM

PA Arabs Set Fire to Joseph's Tomb, Later Claim He Was a Muslim (INN)
PA Arabs set fire to Joseph's Tomb in Shechem (Nablus) Tuesday. Fatah later said the tomb is a Muslim shrine and that Joseph was a Muslim.

OLMERT ASKS ABBAS TO RESTORE JOSEPH'S TOMB

Humiliation: Olmert Asks Abbas to Restore Joseph's Tomb (IRIS blog)

Arguably the most humiliating incident in the Palestinian/Israeli peace accords has been Joseph's Tomb and the yeshiva that was housed on the site. The Oslo Accords placed the site under Israeli control, but Ehud Barak unilaterally withdrew after securing a Palestinian agreement to defend the site and insure freedom of access and Jewish worship. Instead, as the IDF was withdrawing from the site, Palestinian forces opened fire and one Israeli border policemen bled to death as IDF commanders fruitlessly negotiated with Palestinian security for an extended period to permit Israel to return to gather its wounded.

Later a Palestinian mob engaged in an orgy of destruction of the site, accompanied by Palestinian security forces. Multiple desecrations of the site ensued, and finally the Palestinian Authority turned the site into a mosque, as is traditional in the Muslim World regarding captured holy sites.

Minister Natan Sharansky was aptly quoted at the time, fruitlessly attempting to lobby Israel's Foreign Ministry to simply publish the photos of the atrocity:

If we would have razed the gravesite of one of the founders of Islam, billions of Muslims would have taken to the streets. It's inconceivable that the world should not know about this travesty.

Years later, Ehud Olmert has today asked the Palestinian Authority to restore the site:

Israel will ask the Palestinian Authority to repair Joseph's Tomb in Nablus, it was announced Sunday.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said that he had instructed Defense Minister Ehud Barak to act toward the reconstruction and restoration of the tomb and that the issue would be brought up in an upcoming meeting between Olmert and PA Prime Minister Salaam Fayad.

Olmert made the announcement in a letter to a Samaria residents' committee that asked the prime minister to act on the issue in light of the poor conditions of the tomb and its compound.

Olmert wrote that "Joseph the Righteous symbolizes coping with crises out of faith and the ability to turn every situation into a tool which enables us to progress."

Olmert has a different conception of progress than most.

ARABS DESECRATE JOSHUA'S TOMB

Arabs Desecrate Grave of Biblical Prime Minister Joshua
(IsraelNN.com) Jewish worshippers Tuesday were stunned to find Arabs had desecrated the graves of the Biblical Joshua, Caleb and Nun (Joshua’s father).

Joshua served as the Jewish Nation's Prime Minister from the year 2488 until 2516 on the Hebrew calendar (1272 BCE - 1300 BCE).

Members of the One Shechem organization that organizes visits to the graves arrived in the village of Timnat (Kifl) Haress, near Ariel in Samaria, to prepare for a special prayer gathering, discovered that Arab vandals had desecrated the village’s Jewish tombs. The tombs of Yehoshua (Joshua) ben Nun, Nun, and Calev (Caleb) ben Yefuneh were covered with garbage and feces – both human and animal, and anti-Semitic and Nazi slogans and symbols had been painted in the area.

Nevertheless, worshippers gathered at the tombs Tuesday night for special prayers on the tenth of Tevet, the day Kaddish and other prayers are recited for those whose date of death is unknown, such as Calev ben Yefuneh. Organizers had cleaned up the damage and attendees reported a positive experience.

The prayers were also to mark the end of the 30-day increased-stricture mourning period for murdered Jewish father Ido Zoldan of Kedumim, by a Palestinian Authority police officer.

Organizers reported that a wide array of Jews – hareidi, national religious and traditional – took part in the visit and prayers. They also praised the cooperation of security forces, particularly the Efraim Division of the IDF.

The One Shechem organization issued a call to the public to do everything in their power to preserve the holy sites in Samaria, including Joseph’s Tomb in Shechem and to fight for the right of Jews to visit and worship there freely.

Click here for an Arutz-7 Exclusive Photo Essay of a midnight visit to the graves of Joshua, Calev and Nun.

UKRAINIAN COURT BLOCKS SALE OF REB NACHMAN'S GRAVE

Reb Nachman's grave not up for grabs (JTA)

Reb Nachman's grave in Uman is a cultural site and cannot be sold, the Ukrainian government said.

The announcement about the grave of Breslov Chasidism's founder comes after attempts to privatize the site, which thousands of pilgrims visit each year.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that in Ukraine, all objects of cultural and religious value cannot be privatized or nationalized, the head of the ministry's press service, Andriy Deschytsia, told reporters in Kiev on Nov. 15.

Deschytsia also announced that the foreign ministry established the post of ambassador on counteraction of racism, xenophobia and discrimination to coordinate ministry activities with other ministers and state departments.

While visiting Israel, Ukrainian President Viktor Yuschenko on Nov. 13 promised followers of Reb Nachman that he would protect the gravesite and sent a clear message that religious sites are out of bounds and non-negotiable.

Representatives of the Rebbe Nachman of Breslov International Charitable Foundation presented the Cup of Blessing to Yuschenko in Jerusalem to honor his contribution to the development of Ukraine’s relations with Israel and his support for those who visit the grave in Uman.

PALIS RENOVATING JOSEPH'S TOMB

Joseph's Tomb being renovated (JTA)
The Palestinians are renovating Joseph's Tomb.

Palestinian Authority cleaners and repairmen went to work this week on the shrine on the outskirts of the West Bank city of Nablus. The site was vandalized extensively during the outbreak of violence in late 2000.

Revered as the final resting place of the biblical patriarch, the site had long housed a yeshiva and small Israeli border police garrison, but its occupants fled deadly Palestinian assaults. The Palestinians then converted the tomb to a mosque.

Since his break with Hamas Islamists in June, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has been trying to show he can impose security and stability, with Nablus as a proving ground. Hundreds of P.A. police have deployed in the city in recent weeks, confronting local militias.

Security sources said the Palestinians consider their renovation of Joseph's Tomb another "goodwill gesture" toward Israel, and that talks are under way about establishing a regular pilgrimage route for Jews who want to pray at the shrine.

SEE ALSO: The Palestinian Authority and the Jewish Holy Sites in the West Bank: Rachel's Tomb as a Test Case - Nadav Shragai
Since its establishment, the State of Israel has been badly disappointed by agreements transferring responsibility for Jewish holy places to neighboring Arab or Palestinian rule. On September 28, 1995, the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement was signed on the White House lawn, making the Palestinians responsible for civilian and security matters in additional areas of the West Bank. The holy sites in those regions, or adjacent regions (access to which passed through or close to Palestinian areas), were designated as "sites of religious significance" or "archaeological sites." The agreement also dealt with the status of 23 places holy to Jews, including the tombs of biblical figures.

With the outbreak of the second intifada in the fall of 2000, Joseph's Tomb in Nablus was attacked, set ablaze and desecrated. The "Shalom al Israel" synagogue in Jericho was attacked. Holy books and relics were burned, and the synagogue's ancient mosaic was damaged. Bullets were fired at Rachel's Tomb as soon as the riots began. Palestinian Authority security forces, who were responsible for keeping order, not only failed to prevent the violence, they actively participated in it. Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the battles. Unfortunately, there has been a discernable deterioration in Palestinian treatment of Jewish holy sites in 2007, including the Tomb of Joshua bin Nun at Kefel Hares.

Israel's experience since the Oslo agreements has shown that the responsibility for Jewish holy sites or the roads leading to them should remain in Israeli hands. (Institute for Contemporary Affairs/Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)

CHASSIDIC REBBE'S GRAVE RANSACKED

Lublin grave ransacked (JTA)
The grave of a 19th century Chasidic rabbi in Poland was ransacked. Police said thieves stole the aluminum part of the tomb belonging to Rabbi Yaakov Yitzchak Horowitz, known as the Seer of Lublin. The police are searching for the structure, which is used by Chasidic pilgrims from around the world to place notes at the grave of Horowitz, who died in 1815.

HEBRON TOMB DESECRATED

Tomb desecrated in Hebron (YNet)
The Hebron police are searching for an unidentified group of people who tore off the mezuzah from the entrance to the tomb of Yishai (Jesse) and Ruth near the neighborhood of Tel Rumeida in Hebron. The group also smashed a stand for memorial candles and stole a charity collection box. The Jewish residents of the city have announced that following the incident they intend to patrol the area of the tomb.