Attack on biblical patriarch: Palestinians try to pave over Joshua’s Altar

“No barbarian will be allowed to destroy the heritage of the people of Israel,” insists local Jewish leader.

By Israel Today Staff | | Topics: palestinians
Joshua's altar on Mount Ebal. Credit: zstadler via Wikimedia Commons.
Joshua's altar on Mount Ebal. Credit: zstadler via Wikimedia Commons.

The Palestinians are intent on erasing all Jewish historical connections to the Holy Land. More than once they have been caught red-handed destroying archaeological evidence of Israel’s biblical past.

In line with this despicable policy, Channel 12 reports that the Palestinian Authority has begun building a neighborhood on the site of Joshua’s Altar on Mount Ebal in northern Samaria.

An inspector from the Samaria Regional Council’s Lands Department on Sunday discovered that the PA has started paving roads as part of a project for 32 housing units on the ruins of the historic site, which is mentioned in the books of Deuteronomy and Joshua in the Hebrew Bible.

Following the revelation, Israel’s Civil Administration said that the construction vehicle operating on the site had been confiscated and that the archaeologist in charge of antiquities affairs in Judea and Samaria had opened an investigation.

The site, near Shechem (Nablus), is in Area B of Judea and Samaria per the Oslo Accords, which falls under PA administrative control and joint PA-Israeli security control.

The head of the Samaria Regional Council, Yossi Dagan, demanded that the Civil Administration intervene to stop the work immediately.

“No barbarian will be allowed to destroy this [site] of the people of Israel and human history. A disaster of heritage and history,” said Dagan.

“It is a real disaster. It is impossible that in the days of the sovereign state of Israel we will allow under our noses damage to the only historical site that proves the status of the entry of the people of Israel into its land in the days of Joshua,” he continued.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in January that Israel would not allow Palestinians to damage the archaeological site.

In a letter sent to Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech (Otzma Yehudit), Gallant wrote that he had instructed the IDF to carry out frequent patrols in the area, and to prevent any activity which could damage the site.

Moshe Gutman, chairman of the “Keepers of the Eternal,” a coalition of organizations for the protection, preservation and development of antiquities and heritage sites in Judea and Samaria, said that Gallant had broken his promise to protect the site from Palestinian intrusion.

“The Palestinians recognized Israel’s weakness and it was decided to destroy Israel’s most valuable heritage asset in Samaria. If the country does not come to its senses now, the altar and its surroundings will be destroyed and lost forever. I call on the prime minister and ministers of the Israeli government to address the issue immediately,” said Gutman.

Israeli officials said in March that Palestinian road construction had damaged the ancient town of Sebastia, one of the major archaeological sites of the Holy Land, which served as the capital of the Kingdom of Israel nearly three millennia ago.

With reporting by JNS.

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One response to “Attack on biblical patriarch: Palestinians try to pave over Joshua’s Altar”

  1. Mark Cooley says:
    September 5, 2023 at 7:35 pm

    So Sad some think they can erase History and it will be forgotten as same in the US. To those Good is Evil & Evil is Good. Stand Strong WE Stand with You and Know GOD is SOVEREIGN. Maranatha

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