'War of the shrines' stirs tension between Palestinians, Israelis
The fate of the West Bank’s holy sites is the subject of intense competition between Palestinian historical narratives and the theological discourse of the settlement movement. They are also key targets for settlement activities.
Israeli settlers raided the village of Kifl Hares in Salfit province in the northern West Bank on Jan. 8. It was not the first time, and it will not be the last. Every Jewish holiday, hundreds of Israeli settlers, under the protection of Israeli soldiers, enter Kifl Hares to pray in the village on the grounds that it is linked to the Jewish prophet Joshua.
The phenomenon is not restricted to this village. The war of the shrines has pitted Israeli settlers against Palestinians since the occupation of the West Bank in 1967. The settlers have been trying to impose their control over them on religious grounds, using biblical stories to lay claim to them and the land surrounding them.
Kifl Hares has three shrines, which the settlers claim contain the grave of the biblical prophet Joshua. Every Jewish holiday or religious festival, they invade it for prayers and religious rites, the head of Salfit’s tourist board, Muntasir Moussa, told Al-Monitor.
He said that the three shrines do not date back to biblical times. For their part, local elders say leaders of a local family named Bouzit are actually buried there.
