Small Jerusalem dig angers Palestinians
JERUSALEM -- In the space of one day, a small archaeological dig in Jerusalem's Old City became a rallying call aimed at uniting Palestinians against Israel.
The dig -- a few waterlogged sandbags and black buckets of earth behind aluminum walls -- is meant to prepare the way for a new pedestrian walkway up to one of the world's most explosive holy sites, the compound known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.
Though archaeologists insist there is no danger to the walled compound, it inflamed Muslim fears that Israel was planning to damage Islamic holy sites and briefly caused rival Palestinian factions to put aside their differences and condemn Israel together.
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The dig -- a few waterlogged sandbags and black buckets of earth behind aluminum walls -- is meant to prepare the way for a new pedestrian walkway up to one of the world's most explosive holy sites, the compound known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.
Though archaeologists insist there is no danger to the walled compound, it inflamed Muslim fears that Israel was planning to damage Islamic holy sites and briefly caused rival Palestinian factions to put aside their differences and condemn Israel together.