Thousands of devout Jews enter Palestinian village in nighttime pilgrimage to disputed tombs

Thousands of Jews visit disputed West Bank tombs

KIFL HARES, West Bank — Thousands of devout Jews descended on a Palestinian village Friday in a rare pilgrimage to three disputed tombs, praying and dancing at a site they claim holds the remains of biblical ancestors.

The visit, made under the guard of soldiers enforcing a curfew on local residents, took place before dawn Friday to try to avoid provoking trouble with the Palestinians of Kifl Hares, who say the graves hold the remains of Muslims.

Such visits are especially sensitive because Palestinians fear Israeli hard-liners are using religious claims to buttress demands for areas the Palestinians want for a future state.

Earlier this year, a decision by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to add two West Bank shrines to a list of Israeli heritage sites set off weeks of clashes between stone-throwing Palestinians and Israeli troops in the biblical city of Hebron. Both of those sites, the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron and Rachel’s Tomb in Bethlehem, hold great significance for Muslims and Jews.

No clashes were reported during the pilgrimage to Kifl Hares, which began late Thursday and ended early Friday. The Palestinian mayor, however, called it “a serious bother.”

Israeli soldiers, some using glow sticks to direct traffic in the darkness, imposed a curfew on the Palestinian residents. The Jewish visitors, some carrying children or pushing strollers, walked the village’s narrow streets. Near the tombs, groups of ultra-Orthodox men with sidelocks and black hats recited prayers, sang and danced in circles.

Some devout Jews claim biblical Joshua, along with his father, Nun, and companion Caleb are buried in Kifl Hares. Local Palestinians say the graves hold the remains of Muslims.

About 5,000 Jews from around Israel and its West Bank settlements flocked to the village on Thursday night, many on buses chartered for the trip. Israeli soldiers lined the streets, directing visitors to the three tombs.

At the tomb pilgrims believe to be Joshua’s, men in black hats and long coats jostled to enter. They recited prayers, read psalms and snapped photos. Women in long skirts, covering their hair with hats or scarves, prayed in a separate section.

Outside, merchants hawked religious books, CDs and bumper stickers. Others distributed soft drinks and slices of noodle cake. Later, groups of Orthodox men joined arms and danced in a circle, singing praise songs.

“It’s a unique opportunity where they are able to reach the burial place of one of the most important leaders of the Jewish people,” said David Haivri, one of the organizers.

The Israeli military says Jewish worshippers can only enter Palestinian communities with army escorts. In the West Bank, tensions continue to run high, particularly between Palestinian villagers and hard-line Jewish settlers, who in recent months have stepped up rampages in Palestinian communities.

Ahmed Bouzia, the mayor of Kifl Hares, called the most recent visit “a serious bother” and said many villagers worry Israel will try to take the sites away from them.

“All three are Islamic graves,” Bouzia said, adding that one contains the remains of an ancestor. “Anyone who uses his eyes and head can see that these are Islamic graves.”