In a truly disgusting and shocking move, Israel's transportation minister has proposed digging a railway tunnel deep under Jerusalem's Old City. This train would run under large swaths of ground previously untouched, probably leading to large archeological digs and potential damage to holy sites of Jews, Christians and Muslims. And this train? It would end right at the Western Wall, one of the most sacred sites in all of Israel.
The plan is still in its infancy, so there is no timeline or actual proof that this will come to fruition. The tunnel would require excavating more than two miles of tunnel beneath downtown Jerusalem and Jerusalem's Old City.
The train's proposed route will run near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which has long been rumored to be the site where Jesus was crucified and buried. Close by is the Temple Mount.
The Old City is one of the most amazing places to visit on Earth, containing the history of 3 religions, temples, the Western Wall, among other things. To risk disrupting it in an effort to run a train and extra two miles is a shocking and disgraceful proposition. And to name it after someone who called Nazis "very fine people" is equivalent to spitting in the face of Jews worldwide.
Twitter erupted:
My personal tweet:
Any effort by Israel to move forward with this type of plan will surely be met with large scale Palestinian protests. The announcement to name the train station after Donald Trump is largely seen as a public gesture of appreciation after the U.S. formally recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital.
(Writers note: As someone who is half-Israeli and who actually lived in Jerusalem for many years as a child, this decision breaks my heart and angers me. Israel is a beautiful melting pot of religions and cultures. Jerusalem, and in particular the Old City, is such a powerful and moving place to visit. To visit it, to walk the streets, visit the vendors, enter the caverns underneath and touch the walls and dirt that have welcomed visitors from all over the world for thousands of years...it is a rare chance to step back in time. The religious temples, the people who come to share their beliefs and to give reverence to their faith - it is something so beautiful to be a part of, no matter your personal ideology. The idea of tainting that by injecting the name of a man who is a hero to the alt-Right and Nazi movements is vile, despicable and offensive to the core. This writer hopes the plan is...derailed.)
