Saturday, December 5, 2009

Jordan Demands Israel Halt Work on Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Jordan summoned Israeli ambassador Nevo Dani on December 3, 2009 to demand a halt to the unilateral work carried out by the Jewish state on the outer walls of Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre -- regarded by most Christians as the holiest place in Christendom.

The Jordanian government demanded Israel "immediately halt such actions and restore the status quo" in an official letter handed to the Israeli ambassador, according to the International Orthodox Christian News.

A Jordanian official said the Israeli authorities "have removed iron bars around a gate in the walls that have been sealed since the British mandate of Palestine (which ended in 1948) and opened the gate." The official added the Israelis "claimed that they were doing renovations but nobody asked them to do anything."

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is shared by six Christian denominations -- Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Egyptian Coptic, Syrian Orthodox, and Ethiopian Orthodox, as well as Roman Catholic.

Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1994, which forbids any unilateral work being done on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In its letter to the Israeli ambassador, Jordan stressed the "need to maintain the status quo between all Christian denominations."

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