PA Official: Olmert Lying About Temple Mount

Jerusalem -?Native Philadelphia journalist Aaron Klein, bureau chief of the World Net Daily bureau in Jerusalem, has revealed that the chief Palestinian negotiator claims that the Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, has agreed to forfeit Judaism’s holiest site to a coalition of Arab countries.

“What Olmert said (regarding the Mount) is absolutely false. I think he’s not yet ready to tell the Israeli public and is waiting for the right time and he fears his coalition with religious extremists will fall apart if he announces it now,” said a senior Palestinian negotiator on Thursday on the condition his name be withheld. The chief Palestinian negotiator said in months leading up to Annapolis the Palestinian team was “surprised” by Mr. Olmert’s willingness to give up the Temple Mount. According to the Palestinian source, Mr. Olmert agreed to evacuate the Mount but not to turn it over to the Palestinians alone. The negotiator said both sides agreed the Temple Mount would be given to joint Egypt, Jordan and Palestinian Authority control.

In a briefing to reporters in Annapolis, Mr. Olmert claimed Israel’s sovereignty over the Temple Mount is not up for discussion. He said negotiations started at the Annapolis summit had no bearing on the situation on the Temple Mount.

Increased Rocket, Mortar Fire From

Gaza Into Israel

During the past week, Palestinians fired over 70 mortar shells and over 25 Qassam rockets at Israeli communities in the Western Negev and at IDF forces operating in Gaza. Of these, approximately 35 mortar shells and 20 Qassam rockets landed in Israel.

Ground, armored and engineering forces, in coordination with the Air Force, operated against the terror infrastructure in the Gaza Strip in order to distance the terror organizations, in particular Hamas, from the security fence, and to prevent rocket and mortar shell fire into Israel.

The IDF carried out aerial and ground attacks during the past week and identified hitting five Palestinian terrorists involved in the firing of rocket and mortar shells at Israel from the southern Gaza. The IDF also identified hitting 15 Palestinian gunmen who were identified operating against IDF forces in the Gaza Strip and near the security fence, six of them in the past 24 hours.

In addition, the IDF carried out attacks against two posts of the Hamas terror organization in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. The attacks were carried in response to the continuous mortar shelling of Israeli communities.

The terror organizations, in particular Hamas have made continuous attempts to kill or injure Israeli civilians and IDF forces, especially in the area adjacent to the Gaza security fence. The IDF will continue to operate along the security fence in order to prevent the terror organizations from operating near the fence, and to protect Israeli civilians living in the Western Negev.

©The Bulletin 2007