In 1948, the Jews were expelled from Jerusalem by Arab conquerors.  Immediately following this exile, the Arabs almost totally destroyed Jerusalem, systematically ridding the city of anything Jewish and making rubble of all Jewish synagogues, shops and buildings. 

Today, Jerusalem has been rebuilt just as the Bible prophesied.  However, at the Temple Mount, the destruction continues.  Acting as if the 1967 war were never won by Israel, the Palestinians continue their quest to destroy Jewish history, and any and all evidence of the Jews' rightful claim to the land of their ancestors.

As a result of the 1967 war, the Israeli government is supposed to have  complete sovereignty over the Temple Mount.  However, despite a legal right to the Temple Mount, Israel has, in effect, conceded most rights to the land to the Palestinians.  In spite of this olive branch, the Temple Mount remains a dangerous place to be if you are a Jew.  Stones are regularly thrown from the Mosques above the Western Wall onto the Jewish worshippers below.  Riots break out at the first sign of any Jewish religious observance taking place near an Islamic Mosque.  And then, of course, there's the Al-Aqsa Intifada, declared after Ariel Sharon dared to simply visit the Temple Mount on September 28, 2000. 

While Israel has given up much of its sovereignty over its holy sites in the interest of placating the Arab world, the Islamic Waqf is still legally required to make requests to the Israeli government for any activities that might affect the status quo at the Temple Mount.  However, as further reward for Israel's somewhat naïve offer of peace, the Temple Mount, along with its rich history and archeology are being systematically destroyed.  Arafat and his cronies claim any historical evidence of Jewish ties to the Temple Mount have been fabricated.  Thus to further his lie, all evidence of a Jewish temple and Jewish worship at the site must be eliminated.

Over a period of time and upon their own authority, the Islamic Waqf began to Arabize the Temple Mount by excavating beneath its surface.  Claiming that the Temple Mount was one of the most holy sites of a non-people called the Palestinians, they began to build a history where none existed before.  Meanwhile, they were erasing the history of their worst enemy, Israel, and negating any claim the Jews might have to the Holy Lands. 

One such construction project aimed to build a new underground mosque in the area of Solomon's stables.  Tragically, the area of Solomon's stables was known by archeologists to have been rich in Temple-period remains and structures.  Ignoring legal requirements that would have prevented them from destroying valuable Jewish archeology and artifacts, the Islamic Wafq made any hope of excavating these Holy Lands' treasures a lost hope. 

Their construction required the conversion of the Southern Huldah Gate and the excavation of an extensive area surrounding Solomon's Stables.  The conversion of this ancient architecture was made worse by the construction methods employed by the Waqf.  Bulldozers, front-end loaders, dump trucks, and stone cutters poured into the underground chambers beneath the Al-Aqsa mosque and made rubble of the historical temple area.  Sculptures were covered over with cement, and a huge pit 200 feet long and 75 feet wide was created for an emergency exit.  As if this weren't enough, the underground Marawani Mosque was expanded to include an additional mosque and an emergency hall.  The entire area was effectively stripped of its ancient remains. 

Can you imagine the reaction Israel would receive if Israeli construction equipment entered an Islamic Mosque and left nothing but rubble behind?  Riots would break out and the "religion of peace" would let loose its fury on innocent civilians in every market across Jerusalem.  You can bet that the "global community" wouldn't respond as they did when Buddha statues were destroyed by the Taliban in Afghanistan.  In response to public outcry, the new Afghani government is currently rebuilding those statues.  Yet, few people even know of the systematic destruction of irreplaceable artifacts and structures at the Temple Mount.  If the artifacts weren't proof positive of Jewish claims to the Holy Lands, you can bet the media would be reporting this tragedy.  The media and the secular world are faced with a dilemma.  To even discuss the problem could lead to admissions that the Jews have a historical right to the Temple Mount, and force confessions that the Arabs merely took Jerusalem as spoil in one of their many unjust Jihads.

As a result of the Waqf's construction in the Solomon's Stables area, the southern retaining wall of the Temple Mount is in danger of collapse.  Currently, Jordanian engineers are attempting to repair the damage before it collapses - an event that would cause destruction so vast it would reach well outside Israel proper.  Should such an event occur however, you can be sure the Arab world will not see it as a result of their reckless destruction, but as an Israeli plot to destroy their mosques and build the third Jewish temple.

By taking advantage of Israeli good will…or possibly ignorance…the Arabs have not only expanded their claims to sovereignty over the Temple Mount, but have succeeded in removing any signs of a Jewish presence on the Temple Mount, and have built their claim that all was theirs and is now Haram el Sharif.

Ironically, the Palestinian Authority and the Islamic Waqf may unwittingly be aiding in the fulfillment of prophecy.  Besides desecrating a holy site, this hollowing-out of the Temple Mount has significantly weakened the structures that once supported the Jewish Temples, and which have withstood thousands of years of earthquakes.  Should this structure actually collapse, several prophecies stand to be fulfilled. 

In Matthew 24:2, Jesus tells us, when speaking of the Temple, that "not one stone will be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down".  A total collapse of the Temple Mount would certainly fulfill this prophecy.  Should such an event occur, the entire Arab world would be outraged.  It would be viewed as an Israeli plot by most of the world, and could prompt an Islamic retaliation of epic proportions.  Just such an Islamic invasion is prophesied in the Bible, and is sometimes referred to as the war of Gog and Magog.  This war, to be fought on all sides against Israel, will result in the complete destruction of the invading armies.  God will supernaturally protect Israel while eliminating the enemy in spectacular ways.  The Islamists may be setting the stage for their own destruction and the beginning of the seven year tribulation when God's judgments will rain down on a lost and evil world; a world that, no matter how they tried, could not break the covenant made between the God of the universe and His chosen people, the Jews.