Temple Mount Activist Banned from J'lem, Calls for Religious Freedom

Jerusalem, 19 October, 2016 (TPS) -- A Temple Mount activist who has been banned from Jerusalem until the end of October says he has “no idea” why he was banned from Jerusalem until the end of the Succot (Feast of Tabernacles) holiday on October 25, but he added that the attempt to keep him away from the capital would only serve to “add new energy” to his efforts to ensure religious freedom for Jews at the Temple Mount.

“The ban does not deter me from acting for the Temple Mount and rebuilding the Temple,” said Raphael Morris, head of the Hozrim LaHar (Returning to the Mount) organization. “On the contrary, every ban just adds new energy to act for this important cause.”

Morris has been banned from Jerusalem before: Six months ago, ahead of the Passover holiday, police served him with a Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) order to stay away from the city. Then, as now, Morris refused to comply and was subsequently arrested for violating the terms of the ban by attempting to sacrifice a lamb on the Temple Mount.

Morris is far from the only Orthodox Israeli to be hit with a restraining order. Some 60 orders banning Jews from Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria have been issued against in recent years, including one against another Temple Mount activist, current-MK Yehuda Glick. In addition, four Israeli men were held in administrative detention during the past year alone.

Significantly, security officials defend the use of administrative measures as an important tool in the fight to preserve public order, and to prevent clashes between Jews and Arabs.

“Administrative detention and restraining orders from a certain area are issued against people who have clear evidence tying them to terrorist activity, incitement or violence, but cannot be brought to justice in a normal legal procedure,” said Lior Akerman, a former Shin Bet division head told TPS. “This could be either due to the time needed, or out of fear of exposing classified intelligence sources, or because the extent of evidence is not enough to press charges but is sufficient to prove that the person is involved in negative activities that require sanctions.”

Akerman also acknowledged the that the use of administrative measures against Jews is a relatively new phenomenon, but he defended the move as a necessary one in light of growing incitement among extreme right-wingers. “Yes, the government has stepped up law enforcement against that population. Hence the increase in numbers,” Akerman said.

Predictably, right-wing activists bristle at the comparison to Palestinian terrorists. According to Honenu, an Israeli legal aid organization, territorial banning orders are routinely issued against Jews for minor offenses, whereas banning orders are not used against Palestinians, even following violent attacks.

“In the case of Arabs who receive administrative orders, there is no doubt that this is done for actual involvement in terror- ‘ticking bombs’ who are involved in carrying out or planning attacks,” Honenu said. “In contrast, Jews can be summarily banned from Judea and Samaria even when suspected of minor property offenses such damaging tires or agricultural fields, without conclusive evidence. If every Arab youth suspected of rock throwing was banned from entering the area, thousands of people would have been removed, if not tens of thousands.”

In addition, Honenu accused police of banning dozens of Jews from the Temple Mount in violation of its own legal procedures. The group said a Freedom of Information request showed that bans are issued by officers in the field, in violation of regulations that require such decisions to be made by the Jerusalem District Commander after consulting with a sub-district commander and a legal advisor.

Protocol also requires police to issue the decision in writing and to send a copy to the banned individual, but this is rarely done.

“Restraining orders are a grave violation of civil rights… the Shin Bet chooses to take the easy path and issues warrants without the need for evidence, based on secret intelligence sources that are examined by nobody. They bypass the courts, without indictments, evidence or even a possibility to respond to the charges in court,” said a Honenu spokesperson.

Akerman denied the charges, stating that “the legal background and legal aspects to administrative measures against are identical to the measures taken against Palestinians.”

Speaking to TPS by phone, Raphael Morris acknowledged that his activities at the Temple Mount could spark Arab protests, both in Jerusalem and around the country. But he stressed both that he would not obey the ban, and also challenged security forces to act on behalf of civil and religious freedom, rather than protecting violent elements of Israeli society.

“It’s pretty basic, I would have thought. We should protect the people trying to exercise their religious freedom, not the people looking to block it,” Morris told TPS.

Andrew Friedman contributed to this article.