Arafat's final insult

Yasser Arafat, a man responsible for the murder of thousands of Jews, wants to be buried near Judaism's holiest site:

Israel fears acceding to Arafat's request to be buried in Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque would strengthen Palestinian claims to the traditionally Arab sector of the city as a future capital.

One Cabinet minister on Friday said that the holy city is reserved for the burial of Jewish kings, "not Arab terrorists."
[...]
One official said Palestinian leaders are hoping to enlist international support for a burial at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam's third-holiest shrine, which was built on the ruins of the biblical Jewish temples.

Many observers believe Ariel Sharon's visit to Temple Mount in late 2000 - before he became Prime Minister - was a gross insult that "provoked" the Palestinians into starting the second intifada. The same people will almost certainly line up to support Arafat's burial on the same site, however. (The very first paragraph of this AP story says, "Palestinian officials say such a generous gesture could go a long way toward building trust destroyed in four years of fighting.")

Update: Meryl Yourish has an excellent idea.

Posted by damian at November 6, 2004 11:26 AM