Israel began a controversial dig in Jerusalem’s Western Wall Plaza. Bulldozers from the Antiquities Authority broke ground Tuesday near a ramp connecting the Western Wall Plaza to the Temple Mount, with officials saying the aim was to search for historical artifacts before fixing weather damage to the structure. Footage relayed live on Middle East television stations prompted Arab leaders to accuse Israel of trying to undermine the Al-Aksa Mosque and another major Muslim shrine on the Temple Mount. “I appeal to all our Palestinian people to be united and to rise up together to protect Al-Aksa,” Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said. The Antiquities Authority’s director of excavations, Gideon Avni, denied that such a threat existed.
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