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Opinion

Why is the BBC using the language of Hamas?

The broadcaster is misleading viewers by effectively denying the history of a Jewish presence

May 6, 2022 14:35
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Over the past year, Hamas has made great efforts to portray itself as the sole protector of Jerusalem. Those efforts focus on Temple Mount because that site is the “glue” which can bring together Palestinian factions ranging from Islamists to Marxists, as well as the wider Arab world.

The rallying cry “al Aqsa is in danger” produced an 11-day war in May 2021 that was accompanied by violent rioting in some Israeli cities. Just last month it curated violence in Jerusalem which was the topic of international media coverage.

A significant aspect of Hamas’ efforts involves terminology. All Jews visiting Temple Mount are “settlers” who are “storming” the site, according to the Hamas lexicon. They have no religious or historical connection to the place, according to the Hamas narrative, because the Jewish temples supposedly never existed there and the entire site is in fact al Aqsa Mosque.
Hamas is of course not alone in its denial of Jewish history as a means of negating Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

In early November 2014, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) published a “media advisory” document informing foreign journalists of its “concern over the use of the inaccurate term ‘Temple Mount’ to refer to Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound in Jerusalem”.

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