The Temple Mount Movements and the Changing Status Quo at the Holy Esplanade

Abstract

The Holy Esplanade, known as Temple Mount for Jews and al-Aqsa compound for Muslims, is one of the most delicate issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Muslims believe, it is the place where Muhammad started his journey to heaven and God instructed him regarding the rules for the Muslim prayers. Whereas for Jews, it is where the First and Second Temple stood. It is the third holiest place for Islam, and the first for Judaism. With the Israeli victory in the Six-Day war, Israeli control was imposed onto the Western Wall and the Holy Esplanade. With the rise of messianism, discussions about the status quo and the right of Jews to pray there began to appear in the Israeli society. In practical terms, Israel kept the status quo, leaving the control and the management of the Holy Esplanade to the Jordanian waqf. However, over the years, major changes and events have endangered this tacit agreement at the Holy Esplanade. Particularly, new movements arose with the goal of changing the status quo: the Temple Mount movements. The aim of this thesis is to explain who the Temple Mount movements are and how, from marginal, they became central in Israeli politics and society, able to influence the political decision-making process and to change the perspective of Israeli society over the site. This work will cover the different phases of these movements, from being considered marginal and radical in 1980s, to currently being one of the most influential forces in the religious-Zionist arena.