OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (PIC)– An underground Jewish city stretching from the middle of Silwan town in the south through the Buraq Wall of al-Aqsa Mosque is being built according to Israeli reports.
The excavations are being conducted under the Old City of Jerusalem and al-Omari School to the north of al-Aqsa. It reaches Damascus Gate specifically the Zedekiah’s Cave under northern Old City.
Interestingly these reports never include photos or videos of the Israeli excavations as the sites are closed to the public. But the scattered information forms an image of the perils of these excavations according to Qpress.
Underground amusement park for Jews
Rafi Greenberg professor of archaeology at the University of Tel Aviv and one of the founders of Emek Shaveh mentioned that he has been recently digging a metro-sized tunnel starting from Ein Silwan towards al-Aqsa Mosque.
According to Greenberg the tunnel will be constructed with concrete and steel. He described the Israeli excavations under al-Aqsa and the Old City as an underground amusement park for the Jewish people.
Large expansions
According to Haartez Greenberg said that the Israeli excavations expand so that a person can walk for hundreds of meters through tunnels caves and cellars. He added that Israeli archaeologists plan for larger expansions. The secret excavations include excavations under the middle of Silwan village that can be accessed through an iron gate into a small tunnel that is subdivided into rooms and halls.
Haartez reported that a huge 7.5-meter-wide tunnel is being excavated and it will be stretching for 700 meters from Ein Silwan into the Buraq Wall with signage and illumination. This tunnel will reach “a ninth gate” that passes through the historical wall of Jerusalem from the south and it will serve as a two-way route beneath Jerusalem. A small part 60 meters long and 2.5 meters wide from this route was excavated 12 years ago. So far the past two years the tunnel has become 120 meters long and 7.5 meters wide.
More tunnels
According to the Israeli plans the so-called “The Biblical Temple” or what is now called Givati parking will be a “hub” in the planned subterranean Jewish city as Silwan tunnel is connected to it now and the new huge Silwan Tunnel will be connected to it.
Another short tunnel will connect the hub to the existing City of David Visitors’ Center. A cistern called Jeremiah’s cistern has already been excavated in the area.
According to Haartez a “grandiose” Jewish prayer area is planned to be excavated beneath the Buraq Wall plaza. However this plan has been suspended. Rigorous Israeli endeavors are being exerted now to dig underground parking lots under the heart of the Old City.
Haartez report also points to recent huge excavations and large underground buildings that are connected to the Buraq Wall tunnels network. It added that these excavations are closed to the public for many reasons including the safety of the visitors and the difficulty of managing the movement of visitors at such great depths.
