Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

A Free Press
For A Free People

Founded 1997 Monday, October 12, 2009 Edition

Today's WND
News Highlights
FREE News Alerts
Besieged czar, EEOC chief
safe, Obama tells
homosexual crowd
FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU Tear jerker: 5 alive after 1
Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under brave choice

armed guard 2012 forecast: food riots,

ghost malls, mob rule,
Security escorts worshippers at night through terror
Muslim terrorist area Holdren sought 'planetary
WND Directory
regime'
WND Superstore
Posted: October 11, 2009 Congress to Obama: Lose
Page 1 News 6:52 pm Eastern Jennings
Page 2 News
Tancredo questions
Commentary Samuel Sokol illegals' 'sweetheart deals'

WND Money © 2009 WorldNetDaily

Diversions

WND TV/Radio
Today's WND
Commentary Highlights
Whistleblower The ignoble peace prize -
G2 Bulletin By Joseph Farah

Red Alert Ignorance: A death

sentence - By Pat Boone
WND Poll
Consumers need protection
WND Forums
– from the government -
Letters to the Editor By Star Parker

Joke of the Day The political persecution of

Cory Voorhis
SportsNetDaily
- By Tom Tancredo
TV Guide
Don't give up! - By Greg
Movieguide Laurie
Weather Tidal wave of patriots
washing over D.C. - By
Henry Lamb

WND Resources
About WND Pilgrims at night at Joseph's Tomb
WND Scoops
SHECHEM, Israel – Hundreds of Jewish
Who Reads Us
pilgrims last week made their way – under
WND Books
heavily armed guard – into the ancient city of
Advertise with WND
Shechem, known to the Arabs as Nablus, to pray
WND RSS feeds
at the gravesite of the biblical figure Joseph.
MOBILE.WND
News Alerts Sign Up
The visit, which took place this past
Donate to WND
Wednesday, was timed to coincide with the fifth

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (1 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

US Newspapers night of the holiday of Sukkot, also known as

Foreign Newspapers the Feast of Tabernacles. During the weeklong
Major News Wires holiday, Israelites are biblically enjoined to
Other News Services dwell in temporary huts in commemoration of
Other Sites their exodus from Egypt and 40 subsequent
Writers Archives years living in the wilderness. According to
Government Officials Jewish tradition, seven biblical figures, known
Search Engines
as the Ushpizin, come to visit those observing
Media
the holiday, with Joseph arriving on the fifth
Entertainment
night – the night of the pilgrims' visit.
WND People
Contact WND Groups of pilgrims come monthly, escorted by
Who's Who at WND Israeli security forces in heavily armored,
Customer Service bulletproof busses. According to the Oslo
Speakers and Talk Show Accords, the Palestinian Authority is required to
Guests grant Jews free access to the site.
Columnists

In 2000, however, after years of repeated attacks

on worshippers, and attempts by Fatah terrorists
to take over the tomb, then-Prime Minister Ehud
Barak ordered a withdrawal and surrendered the
holy site to the PA.

After the withdrawal, Arabs burned Joseph's

Tomb, destroying the adjacent Od Yosef Chai
Yeshiva complex and smashing the dome above
the gravesite.

Currently, visits must be coordinated with the

army, which secures the area by imposing a
curfew and escorts busses of pilgrims to the
shattered structure. Shechem is the main
stronghold of the Al Aqsa Martys Brigades, the
declared military wing of the Palestinian
Authority. The Brigades took responsibility for
every suicide bombing in Israel in 2005, 2006
and 2007 and is behind a large volume of deadly
shootings and rocket attacks.

(Story continues below)

Only three busses are allowed to the tomb area

at a time. Due to the volume of worshippers, the

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (2 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

army escorts people into the tomb in shifts.

Members of the Samaria municipal council set

up a Sukkah booth next to the tomb, serving
refreshments for those who came to pray. In the
courtyard of what was once the yeshiva, several
meters away from the tomb itself, a musician
played traditional Jewish melodies while a mix
of worshippers, from black-coated Hassidim to
casually dressed teenagers, danced together in a
circle, singing holiday songs.

David Ha'ivri, spokesperson for the Samaria

Liason Office, commented to WND about the
pilgrimage:

"On the one hand, we're very glad that we have

the opportunity to visit Joseph's tomb about
once a month. We are very grateful to the IDF
command for facilitating this visit, and, as we
can see, thousands of people from around the
country are eager to take part in the prayers at
Joseph's Tomb," he said.

"On the other hand, the situation is still very

disgraceful," he continued. "Joseph's Tomb is
standing in its ruins. It has been terribly
desecrated by the Arabs in Shechem. We need
to cause a situation where we can renovate and
show our honor to Joseph, to God and to the
Jewish people. We must reclaim Joseph's Tomb
for the Jewish people in order to re-establish the
yeshiva, and open up Joseph's Tomb to Jewish
visitors at any time during the day, throughout
the week."

In November 2007, Gershon Mesika was elected

mayor of the Samaria regional council and
immediately petitioned the local military
command to allow him and his staff to visit
Joseph's Tomb in order to hold a special
thanksgiving prayer session. Afterwards,
Mesika negotiated with the army to allow for
monthly pilgrimages to the tomb. Every month,
thousands of people rush to register for one of

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (3 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

several hundred highly prized seats on specially

chartered busses.

This was a welcome change for the Jewish

community, after seven years without access to
the holy site.

Meskika commented that while almost a

thousand people came to Joseph's Tomb over
the holiday, thousands more would certainly
come were the IDF to permit it. The mayor
decried that fact that Jews are forced to visit one
of their holiest sites like "thieves in the night."

Currently, the IDF only allows pilgrims access

to the site after dark when the area is easier to
secure. The route leading to the tomb complex is
lined with PA flags and posters of terrorists
belonging to the Arab militias that operate in the
area.

Mesika quoted an ancient tradition that states

that Joseph's Tomb "is one of the three places
where the non-Jews cannot deceive the Jewish
people by saying that they stole it from them,"
due to it being recorded in Scripture that the
area was purchased by the Jewish people.

The PA has claimed that Joseph's Tomb is in

fact not a Jewish shrine, but rather the burial
place of a Muslim Sheikh. The PA, however,
has a history of denying the historical
connections between Israelis and holy sites.

Former Knesset member Rabbi Yaakov Yosef

attended the festivities at the tomb. As he led
prayers, people crowded around him jostling to
snap pictures. He commented on the
significance of visiting Joseph's Tomb on the
night in which Joseph is said to visit the Sukkot
of Jews all over the world.

"We remind ourselves of Joseph, not just in

theory when we invite him into our Sukkot, but
we visit him in his place so that [the merit] of

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (4 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

Joseph the righteous will guard over all of

Israel," he said.

When asked if he believed that Jews would soon

be able to visit the tomb during the day, Yosef
responded, "We hope that today the messiah
will arrive and redeem us, and we will arrive
here during the day as we once did, without
fear."

Related offers:

"The Late Great State of Israel"

"Schmoozing with Terrorists: From Hollywood

to the Holy Land Jihadists Reveal their Global
Plans – to a Jew!"

Definitive work on Mideast – available only

here!

"Everlasting Hatred: The Roots of Jihad"

"Israel in Crisis"

"Myths and Facts: A Guide to the Arab-Israeli

Conflict"

Perfect gift! Compass that points to Jerusalem

Previous stories:

What Temple? Fatah says 'only a Muslim holy

site'

Jewish tourists attacked in Temple Mount

clashes

Did Obama call on Israel to vacate Temple

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (5 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

Mount?

Obama working against Israel on Capitol Hill?

'Obama can create headache for Netanyahu'

Netanyahu pardons terrorists who killed Israelis

Netanyahu not extreme on Jewish construction

American government website 'ignores Jews'

U.S. summons Israeli ambassador again

Netanyahu to U.S.: Israel will govern itself,

thank you

Media misleading on Jews evicting Arabs from

Jerusalem

U.S. 'partner' defends 'right' to resist Israeli

'occupation'

'Peace partner' boasts: We never recognized

Israel

Samuel Sokol is a writer with the Israel

Resource News Agency and is the Middle-East
Correspondent for the Five Towns Jewish
Times.

E-mail to a Friend Printer-friendly version

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (6 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]

Pilgrims visit Joseph's Tomb, under armed guard

| Page 1 | Page 2 | Commentary | WND

Money | WND TV/Radio | Diversions | G2
Bulletin | About Us | Terms of Use | Privacy
| Contact Us |

Copyright
1997-2009
All Rights
Reserved.
WorldNetDaily.
com Inc.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=112642 (7 of 7) [10/12/2009 6:48:48 AM]