Joseph's Tomb

, "Patriarchal Burial Site Explored for First Time in 700 Years", May/June 1985] .

Some archaeologists believe that the site in Nablus is a few centuries old and could contain the remains of a Muslim sheikh named Yusef Al-Dwaik [Suggested by [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/joetomb.html JVL Article] ] . According to Jewish texts, Joseph's body was taken from Egypt during the Exodus and later reinterred in Shechem [According to

In the mid-1980s a Jewish yeshiva, "Od Yosef Chai", was built at the site along with an Israeli Defence Forces military outpost.

In 1995, the settlement was transferred to Palestinian National Authority jurisdiction,Fact|date=February 2007 however Israeli troops continued to control the site to ensure free access to students and pilgrims in accordance with the Oslo accords. The Oslo accords set out that the Palestinian Authority is responsible for the safety of Jewish and Christian religious sites under its control and that it has to ensure free access to them ] During the Western Wall Tunnel riots in 1996, the tomb was attacked and six Israeli soldiers were killed.

Near the start of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in October 2000, the shrine became a target of armed militant demonstrators. Seventeen Palestinians and one Israeli soldier were killed in fighting around the tomb. [(April 2005) Palestine and Palestinians. Ramallah, Palestine: Alternative Tourism Group. ISBN 9950-319-01-3] On October 7, 2000 the Israeli army withdrew from the site leaving it in the hands of the Palestinians. [Date confirmed by [http://www.palestinefacts.org/pf_1991to_now_alaqsa_josephstomb.php palestinefacts.org] source] Soon afterward, the holy tomb and army post were ransacked (the outpost and yeshiva were destroyed in this deliberate attack on a site sacred to Jews); the Palestinian police allegedly allowed the ransacking to go ahead without intervention.http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/joetomb.html Jewish Virtual Library]

Nablus mayor Ghassan Shakaa promised to repair the site to its pre-1967 stateFact|date=February 2007, and repairs were carried out; however, workers painted the exterior of the shrine's dome green (the color of Islam), fuelling speculation that the Palestinians intended to build a mosque on the site. After some world outcry, the dome was repainted a neutral color.Fact|date=March 2008

Since 2000, Israelis are no longer allowed to visit the site, although some pilgrims are at times allowed to enter under armed escort. Despite the ban some Breslov hasidim still visit the site under the cover of darkness evading army and police checkpoints. There had been an incident where some of these pilgrims were attacked and wounded. [http://web.israelinsider.com/Articles/Security/3072.htm] With this ban and the fears that Palestinian authorities are not sufficiently protecting Jewish and Christian religious sites the shrine has become the source of ongoing frustration and anger amongst Jews.

On February 23, 2003 the carved stone covering the grave was destroyed. [ [http://www.shechem.org/kyos/kyos.html קבר יוסף בשכם ] ]

On May, 2007, the Breslov hasidim visited the site for the first time in two years. In 2007, it was discovered that the tomb had been vandalized, and filled with burning garbage [ [http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/134258 Joseph's Tomb is Shechem's Garbage Dump - News Briefs - Arutz Sheva ] ] .In February 2008, vandals set burning tires inside the tomb. [Klein, Aaron "Palestinians burn Joseph's Tomb" World Net Daily 2/12/2008] As a response, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas declared the tomb a Muslim holy site, and downplayed reports of joint Israeli-Palestinian cooperation on restoring the tomb. [Klein, Aaron "Biblical hero Joseph 'was really a Muslim'" World Net Daily 2/14/2008]

During September 2008, Jewish people have been going to the tomb to perform the Selichot services each day before dawn.Fact|date=September 2008

Footnotes

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* cite web
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title = Joseph’s Tomb
date =
year = 2002
month =
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publisher = Jewish Virtual Library
pages = 1
language = English
archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20020701221933/http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/joetomb.html
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* cite web
url = http://www.palestinefacts.org/pf_1991to_now_alaqsa_josephstomb.php
title = Attack on Joseph’s Tomb October 2000
date = 2003-02-27
format = php / html
work =
publisher = PalestineFacts
pages = 1
language = English
archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20030227185147/http://www.palestinefacts.org/pf_1991to_now_alaqsa_josephstomb.php
archivedate = 2003
*cite web
url = http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=31203
title = Arab vandals desecrate Joseph's Tomb
date = 2003-02-25
format = asp / html
work =
publisher = WorldNetDaily
pages = 1
language = English
archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20030618214344/http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=31203
archivedate = 2003

External links

* [http://www.rachelstomb.org/film.html Film depicting the vandalism & destruction of the tomb]
* [http://www.shechem.org/kyos/engkyos.html Website with photos of the destruction]
* [http://www.shechem.org/kyos/d2.jpgPhoto of the tomb during the destruction]