The Tunnel; Part of An Aqueduct Uncovered in the Previous Century and Re-Discovered
in 1987
From “Haaretz”, september 25 1996, by Nadav Shragai
The Hasmonean Tunnel, opened two nights ago at the foot of
the perimeter of the Temple Mount, served as an aqueduct in the
Hasmonean Period, and was already discovered in the previous century
by the explorers Charles Wilson and Konrad Schick. Until nine years
ago, and for more than 100 years, no one had entered it; it remained
forgotten in the depths of the earth, full of mud and water, under
houses in the Moslem Quarter .
It was only in 1987 that the Ministry for Religious Affairs
re-excavated the tunnel and connected it to the Western Wall tunnel,
another tunnel about 500 meters long, exposing the Western Wall along
its entire length. The work was carried out at the time by
archeologist Dan Bahat, and there was great excitement at the renewed
discovery.
The length of the Hasmonean Tunnel is about 80 meters, its
height seven meters, its width a little less than one meter. It
closes in on those walking through as in a narrow canyon. At the
time, archeologists said it was equal in importance to the Shiloah
(Siloam) Pool. Originally, the tunnel was dug as a water aqueduct, an
open channel on a hillside. The portion connected to the Western Wall
tunnel is the southern segment of a much longer aqueduct, which
emerged from north of the city near the Damascus Gate; there, it
apparently drained the flood waters of the Tyrophaon stream, across
from the Temple Mount.
At its northern end, it joined up with the southern part of
a small pool, cut across its middle by a wall, the Starothyon Pool,
under the Monastery of the Sisters of Zion (Soeurs de Sion). The nuns
there built the dividing wall to block access to explorers and
archeologists in the previous century, for fear that strangers would
try to penetrate into the monastery through the part of the pool in
its grounds. The Roman Emperor Adrian had also divided the Starothyon
Pool, in another direction, lengthwise.
For several years, employees of the Ministry for Religious
Affairs and the Corporation for the Development of East Jerusalem
engaged in cleaning out the tunnel and the part of the pool which had
not been demarcated by the Sisters of Zion.
In the nine years since the link-up between the two tunnels
(that of the Western Wall, and the Hasmonean), the Waqf succeeded in foiling a number of plans meant to
permit movement of tourists and hikers from the Wall Plaza, through
the Western Wall Tunnel and the Hasmonean Tunnel, up to ground level,
in the markets of the Old City. The Religious Affairs Ministry tried
several times to open up an entrance from the end of the Hasmonean
Tunnel up to ground level, near the Temple Mount (but not actually
within it).
Time after time, the Waqf and the Supreme Moslem Council set
off disturbances, and the plans were disrupted, until they were
frozen for some years by the decision of the security authorities.
Three years ago, it was decided to dig a passage for pedestrians, a
short additional tunnel, with steps, for a stretch of about 15
meters, from the Starothyon Pool up to the vicinity of the stairway
leading to the Al-Omariya School.
That work was completed a year and a half ago: the
directorate of the Wall, the Jerusalem Municipality, the Religious
Affairs Ministry and the East Jerusalem Development Corporation
waited for a “green light” from the political echelon to carry out
the final breakthrough.
Two days ago, at the conclusion of Yom Kippur, approval was
granted, and within an hour-and-a-half the entrance was broken open.
The Restoration of the Hasmonean Tunnel
in the Context of
Israel’s
Peace Agreements
It has been asserted that, in completing the restoration of the Hasmonean
Tunnel alongside the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Israel has breached
provisions of agreements signed in the current peace process. The
agreements themselves contain no basis for such charges. In particular,
the following points should be noted:
- The Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles of September 23,
1993, and the Interim Agreement of September 28, 1995, both provide that
the issue of Jerusalem is one of a number of permanent-status issues to
be negotiated between the sides. The results of these negotiations are to
be implemented at the conclusion of the 5-year interim period. The
Interim Agreement provides that during this interim period the
Palestinian Council will have no jurisdiction over issues to be
negotiated in the permanent-status negotiations, including Jerusalem,
(Article XVII.1). - The Interim Agreement does not provide for any transfer of powers
and responsibilities in Jerusalem to the Palestinians. Under Article I,
“Israel shall continue to exercise powers and responsibilities not so
transferred,” i.e., Israel will continue to exercise all powers and
responsibilities in Jerusalem. It should be noted that the fact that,
under the Interim Agreement, Israel retains all powers and
responsibilities with regard to Jerusalem does not prevent the
Palestinian side from presenting any positions in the permanent status
negotiations. Article XXXI of the Agreement provides that: “Neither Party
shall be deemed, by virtue of having entered into this Agreement, to have
renounced or waived any of its existing rights, claims or positions.” - It has been asserted that, in completing the restoration work on the
tunnel, Israel has in some way attempted to affect the status of
Jerusalem (* – see footnote). The restoration of archeological sites, however,
has
absolutely no effect on questions of status. This can be seen from the
Interim Agreement itself which, on the one hand, provides that the status
of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip must not be changed (Article XXXI.7),
and on the other, transfers to the Palestinian side powers and
responsibilities in the sphere of archeology that permit it to protect,
preserve and develop archeological sites throughout these areas (Annex
III, Appendix 1). Clearly, if the Agreement does not see any change of
status on the development of archeological sites in the West Bank and
Gaza Strip by the Palestinian side, there can be none in the development
of sites in Jerusalem by Israel. - With regard to the assertion that the status quo has been affected,
it should be recalled that the tunnel has been open to visitors for some
years. The only effect of the recent work has been to create an
additional opening, improving access so that visitors can view the tunnel
with greater comfort and safety. In this regard, it should be noted that
Israel’s agreements, both with the Palestinians and with Jordan, stress
the importance of providing freedom of access to archeological and
historical sites. The transfer of archeological sites to the Palestinians
in the Interim Agreement is subject to a specific provision requiring the
Palestinians to “ensure free access to archeological sites,” while
Article 9 of the Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty, dated October 26, 1994,
obliges both sides to provide “freedom of access to places of religious
and historic significance.” There can be no doubt that in improving
access to this important site to enable more visitors to appreciate it in
safety and comfort, Israel is acting in accordance with the letter and
spirit of these agreements. - It should also be noted that the Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty contains
a provision concerning places of historical and religious significance.
Article 9 of this treaty provides that Israel “respects the present
special role of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Muslim holy shrines in
Jerusalem” and agrees to “give high priority to the Jordanian historic
role in these shrines.” In this particular case, in which the tunnel
neither traverses nor affects the Temple Mount, the provision is not
relevant. In any event, Israel’s obligation to take cognizance of
Jordanian historic ties in the permanent-status negotiations does not
place any restrictions on the exercise of its authority in Jerusalem
pending the outcome of the negotiations. - Finally, in view of the violent and apparently orchestrated outbursts
which have occurred in recent days, it should be recalled that the
Interim Agreement, in Article XXII, provides that Israel and the
Palestinian Council shall “foster mutual understanding and tolerance, and
shall accordingly abstain from incitement, including hostile propaganda,
against each other.”
Footnote: In fact, the Interim Agreement does
not prohibit Israel from taking steps that may change the status of
Jerusalem — Article XXXI.7 only prohibits the parties from taking steps
which may affect the status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
