July 26, 2017
The Arab-language media routinely features anti-Semitic cartoons suggesting that Israel is attempting to take over control of Muslim holy sites. In these depictions Israel is frequently portrayed as an octopus or snake which is taking over holy sites in Jerusalem such as the Temple Mount in bodily form. These cartoons stoke anti-Semitic sentiment in the Arab world.
This was no different after the recent attack by three Israeli Arab terrorists on the Temple Mount, which prompted Israel to take security measures such as temporarily closing the Temple Mount and installing metal detectors to prevent similar attacks in the future. While Israel didn’t make any changes to the Temple’s Mount’s status-quo (the 50 year old arrangement whereby Israel maintains security control over the area with the Jordanian Waqf maintaining civilian administration of the holy site) tensions were fueled by increased incitement on the part of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other extremist elements. Though Israel has been repeatedly accused over the years of attempting to change the status quo and “Judaize” Jerusalem by eradicating the Muslim connection to the city, the current tensions represent a significant moment in this disturbing phenomenon.
The Arab media responded to the installation of metal detectors at the Temple Mount with a series of anti-Semitic cartoons suggesting that this was not an attempt to regain security control of the area, but rather as part of a Jewish conspiracy to take over control of Muslim holy sites.
Below are examples of some of the anti-Semitic images from the Arab media:
