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Thousands of Israelis hold Jewish ceremony in Salfit village

Ma’an – 29/04/2011

TEL AVIV — Thousands of Israelis, escorted by the Israeli army, entered the village of Kifl Haris in the northern West Bank Thursday night to pray at the site revered by Jews as the tomb of the Joshua, Israeli media reported.

To mark the anniversary of his death, mass prayer services were held in the Salfit district Palestinian village at midnight, in a ceremony organized by settler groups.

Israeli news site Ynet said an Orthodox Jewish man who bought a nargila pipe from a Palestinian shop in the village, was greeted by angry shouts from Israelis, saying “don’t buy in Arab shops.”

Israel’s Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger addressed the worshipers, calling for greater access to Jewish religious sites, and urging settlers to coordinate their visits with the Israeli army, following the death of an Israeli settler on Sunday after a group of Jewish worshipers snuck into Nablus without coordinating with Palestinian or Israeli security.

“Every Jew has a right to visit Joseph’s Tomb but it must be coordinated with the security forces. Take great care of your souls,” Metzger was quoted saying by Ynet.

“I call on government ministers to allow more people to enter the site, not just once a month, especially as this is stipulated in all the agreements.”

Settler leader Gershon Mesika held up Joshua as an example to Israelis, Ynet reported, saying “Sever the hand of any person who lifts it against a Jew. Our leaders must learn from Joshua’s power and decisive way.”

Israel’s Minister of Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Yuli Edelstein and four Knesset members attended the ceremony, which was for the first time marked as a official state event, the far-right Israeli news agency Artuz Sheva reported.

The agency quoted MK Danny Danon drawing on the story of Joshua, saying “We are standing by the tomb of Joshua son of Nun, conqueror of the land. We do not need to fear the word ‘conquer’ — there is no shame in conquering the land.”

April 29, 2011 - Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Timeless or most popular

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