Zeppelins in the Middle East, Part II: The Graf Zeppelin's Visits in 1929 and 1931 to Paletine and Egypt

1933 Egyptian Stamp Marking 1931 Visit

In yesterday's first part of this two-part post,we dealt with the use of Zeppelins in the Italo-Turkish War in Libya and the bizarre 1917 adventure of German Zeppelin L59 attempting to cross British-occupied Egypt and Sudan to resupply troops in German East Africa.

Dr. Hugo Eckener

As mentioned in yesterday's post, after the death of Count von Zeppelin in 1917, the Zeppelin enterprise was headed by Dr. Hugo Eckener, When the Versailles Treaty force Germany to give up all military Zeppelins, Eckener began to seek permissions for civilian passenger Zeppelin airships, and by the late 1920s there began the age of luxury airship travel, when these luxury liners in the sky offered elites a way to cross the oceans faster than ships, at a time when heavier-than-air crossings were still he realm of adventurers like Charles Lindbergh and passenger aircraft with such range were still in the future (though the first passenger flying boats were beginning to challenge them).

Eckener's crown jewel was the Graf Zeppelin, named for the founder Count von Zeppelin. It remains one of the best-known Zeppelins, its memory eclipsed only by the ill-fated Hindenburg, whose end was so memorably captured in newsreels in 1937. (The Hindenburg was not one of Eckener's. He hated the Nazis and the feeling was mutual, and he was removed from his position after Hitler came to power and the Zeppelin works nationalized by the Nazis. Hindenburg, with its bright swastikas on its tail, was Hitler's attempt to impress the world. Well, it's certainly remembered.)

Returning, though, to Graf Zeppelin. Designated LZ 137, she was built at the Zeppelin works at Friedrichshaven am Bodensee between 1926 and 1928, she was 776 feet long (the largest airship built to that time) and could reach a top airspeed of 80 mph, though it normally did not reach that speed. During its lifetime (1928-1937)  it would make 590 flights and cover a million miles, including one round-the-world trip (Weltfahrt). She was Weimar Germany's pride and joy, and she was meant as a demonstration of German aviation prowess.

As a result its trips were often intended to impress, and therein lies the theme of this posts: its Middle East visits, to Palestine in 1929 and to both Palestine and Egypt in 1931. It would also visit Tangier during one of its Mediterranean voyages, as well as I believe on its trips to Latin America.

The  1929 Visit to Palestine

For a good summary of both the 1929 and 1931 visits, let me refer you to zan  article by Alan McGregor in a 1994n issue of Saudi ARAMCO World: "Contrary Winds: Zeppelins Over the Middle East." 

Originally, the 1929 trip was supposed to include both Palestine and Egypt, but as the article notes, while Britain approved overflying the Palestine Mandate, it vetoed the visit to Egypt, worried about Egyptian nationalism and determined that the first dirigible to visit Egypt should be the British R-101, and intending that it make a visit in 1930 to India, making a stop in Cairo. Nevertheless, an Al-Ahram reporter, Mahmud Abul-Fath, was going to make the voyage. The ARAMCO World article quotes dispatch he publish on March 24, 1929, the day before the flight:

"The Egyptian people, through no fault of their own, are being prevented from witnessing a magnificent spectacle. This is due to [British] envy of the thoughtful, hard- working German nation, which is developing so quickly and outclassing most other countries, particularly in aviation. As a result, the people cannot see the [Graf Zeppelin], and it will not see the Suez Canal."

Below is a German map of the 1929 route (in which rhe Zeppelin did not land):

Route of the 1929 Visit

Leaving Fridrichshafen on March 25, 1929, tthe Graf passed over Italy, Crete and Cyprus before reaching Palestine in the evening.

The ARAMCO World article is a little confusing in its sequencing:

By early evening they were over Palestine, dropping a bundle of 5000 letters to the large German colony at Jaffa. They found Mount Carmel bedecked with German flags and the word "Willkommen " spelled out in 8-meter-height letters; then they flew along the coast to Tel Aviv, where a passenger showered confetti on the crowds below.

Since Jaffa and Tel Aviv adjoin each other, while Mount Carmel towers above Haifa, this is confusing. Mail drops were in fact made at both Haifa and Jaffa, and in fact franked postcards from both are collectors' items, frequently seen on E-Bay and philatelic sites. Both Haifa and Jaffa had large German colonies (actually Jaffa's was at Sarona, now a part of Tel Aviv), but oher accounts and the map make clear that after the mail drop at Haifa, he Zeppelin proceeded down the coast to Tel Aviv-Jaffa, I'm unsure if this photo of the Zeppelin over Sarona is from the 1929 or the 1931 visit (most photos are from 1931, since most of the 1919 flight was after dark):

Over Sarona

The ship then sailed east to Jerusalem, stopping its engines to hover over the Old City, then proceeding eastward to Jericho and the Dead Sea. Over the sea, the captain  descended to close to the surface before rising and proceeding back over Jerusalem, now visible in bright moonlight.

Proceeding out over the Mediterranean, the Zeppelin proceeded along the Egyptian coast, where Dr. Eckener, off Rashid, sent birthday greetings to King Fuad I, regretting that "contrary winds" prevented him from visiting Egypt. Graf Zeppelin then passed over Greece, circled the  Acropolis, and proceeded via Vienna to Friedrichshafen and home. The first Middle East visit had lasted four days, May 25-28. Her next Middle East visit would be in 1931.

Meanwhile,  the British completed their challenger to he Graf Zeppelin, the R-101. On October 5, 1930, on its first trip outside Britain, R-101 crashed and burned in France, killing 48 of the 54 people aboard including Britain's Air Minister. That marked the end of British dirigible building. It also brought Dr. Eckener to the funeral of those killed. At that point, the British Air Ministry invited Eckener to visit Egypt with the Graf.

On April 9, 1931, Graf Zeppelin left Friedrichshafen at 6:10 AM and proceeded south over Corsica, Sardinia, and Sicily, and reached the Libyan coast at 5:15 AM the next day and proceeded eastward over Benghazi, crossing into Egypt at Sollum and continuing to Alexandria at 12:55 PM. The Zeppelin spent 40 minutes circling over Alexandria while much of the population watched.

Over Alexandria

From Alexandria, the ship followed the Nile to Cairo, arriving around 3:30 PM. Eckener brought it over the  Qubba Palace, where King Fuad I and Queen Nazli were watching from a balcony. He dipped the great Zepplin's bow three times to the monarch.

So much of the 1929 trip had been in the dark that there were few photo opportunities, But the 1931 trip offered plenty of the sort of publicity photos Eckener and Germany had been hoping for.

Over the Cairo Citadel and Muhammad ‘Ali Mosque

After cruising over Cairo, Graf Zeppelin then proceeded to the Pyramids at Giza, providing multiple photo ops and descending to only a short distance above the Great Pyramid of Khufu. These were to become some of the most iconic pictures of the visit:

The Zeppelin proceeded south to the Step Pyramid at Saqqara and then cruised northward over the cities of the Delta overnight, while the passengers slept. At the coast it turned back towards Cairo and its first landing in the Middle East.

At 5:15 AM,the ship reached Cairo and the old Almaza airfield, which was Cairo's original civil airport and is today an Air Force Base some distance south of Cairo International Airport which replaced it. There, at 6:10 AM, British troops stationed in the area manned the mooring cable and also formed  a cordon around he airship to hold back surging crowds, estimated at 30,000, who had flocked to Almaza to see it Firehoses were reportedly used to hold back the crowds when it took off later. An account of that visit can be read here.

Troops Guarding the Zeppelin

Eckener and some of the crew disembarked in Cairo, as did others wishing to see Cairo. Eckener had lunch with dignitaries and an audience with King Fuad. Meanwhile,  the Zeppelin took off for a voyage over Palestine, passing over the Suez Canal, gaza, ajd Tel Aviv-Jaffa, then turning east toward Jerudalem.

Arriving this time in clear daylight at 11 am, the Zeppelin took several circuits over the city, stopping her engines 100 meters over the Church ofthe Holy Sepulchere, and also unfurling the German flag over the (German-run) Augusta Victoria Hospital on the ridge east of the Old City. And, of course, again providing great photo opportunities:

Over the Old City of Jerusalem

Over the Old City of Jerusalem

Over David's Tower and the Jerusalem Citadel

The Graf Zeppelin then returned to Cairo, landing at Almaza at 5 PM. After picking up Eckener and the other, and departed over the desert, passing over Siwa and exiting over Libya. The second Middle East visit of the Graf Zeppelin was over. She returned to Friedrichshafen after 97 hours (four days plus an hour).

The ARAMCO World article cited earlier claims that for years Egyptians used the phrase "zayy al-zeppelin" (like the Zeppelin) to refer to something very large.

The Politics and Logistics of the Pope's Holy Land Visit

Pope Francis I's visit to Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, and Israel beginning tomorrow has already stirred some controversy, though the Vatican seems intent on avoiding political controversy.As I noted earlier today, the visit marks the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's then-unprecedented visit to the Holy Land in January 1964 (videos at my earlier post), and Paul's meeting then with the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Athenagoras I. The current Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew I, will be meeting with Francis in Jerusalem.

The three-day trip is shorter than the visits of John Paul II in 2000 or of Benedict XVI in 2009. Francis has a packed three-day schedule meeting political religious figures in Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, and Israel (in that order). One result is that unlike all three previous papal visits, he is not visiting Nazareth, and this has annoyed Christians in Galilee, which has many religious sites associated with Jesus' life. But that is only one of many controversies already sparked by the trip even before it begins.

The Pope insists on traveling in an open vehicle, so Israeli security is going to be tightened; this has already led to complaints by Palestinian Christians that they won't be able to get close to the Pope, and by shopkeepers in Jerusalem's Old City that they won't be allowed to open. There is also concern about radical Jewish extremists who have defaced Christian churches recently. This is especially sensitive because the Pope is celebrating a Mass in the Cenacle or Upper Room, traditionally identified with the site of the Last Supper, which shares the same structure with the Jewish sitte venerated as the Tomb of King David and with a mosque. (Pilgrims might wonder why the Gospels don't mention that yhe Last Supper was upstairs over David's yomb, but perhaps few pilgrims notice this, or the Gothic architecture.) Jewish groups have protested the planned service.

Papal trips usually involve meeting with local Catholic prelates, and another controversy has erupted over the plan by Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Rai to visit Jerusalem with the Pope. No Maronite Patriarch has visited Jerusalem since before 1967, when Israel took East Jerusalem from Jordanian control. Rai's predecessor, Cardinal Sfeir, joined other Papal visits only for the Jordanian leg. Rai has said he will not meet with Israeli officials, and the Vatican has said the decision was Rai's personal initiative, not Rome's.

 Much of the criticism in Lebanon has been in the media; one reason may be that all parties in Lebanon are struggling to find a compromise candidate for President (who must be a Maronite); even Hizbullah has not raised a major fuss.

There has also been comment on the fact that the Vatican is referring to the "State of Palestine" and to Mahmud "Abbas as "Prsident of the State of Palestine, The Vatican recognizes the UN General Assembly's recognition of Palestine. On this visit the Pope will be visiting the Palestinian Authority before Israel; he arrives in Jordan on a Saturday, the Israeli Sabbath, so the calendar partially determined the order, but he will helicopter directly from Amman to Bethlehem rather than going via Israel.

From Vatican Radio, the official and very packed itinerary:


Pilgrimage of His Holiness Pope Francis in the Holy Land on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras .(May 24 – 26, 2014) – Program, 27.3.2014

Saturday, May 24, 2014
08:15 Departure from Rome Fiumicino Airport for Amman
13:00 Arrival at the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman
13:45 ARRIVAL CEREMONY in the al-Husseini Royal Palace in Amman
COURTESY VISIT TO THEIR MAJESTIES THE KING AND QUEEN OF JORDAN
14:20 MEETING WITH THE AUTHORITIES OF THE KINGDOM OF JORDAN. Discourse of the Holy Father
16:00 HOLY MASS at the International Stadium in Amman. Homily of the Holy Father
19:00 Visit to the Baptismal Site at Bethany beyond the Jordan
19:15 MEETING WITH REFUGEES AND DISABLED YOUNG PEOPLE in the Latin church at Bethany beyond the Jordan. Discourse of the Holy Father

Sunday, May 25, 2014
8:15 FAREWELL FROM JORDAN at the Queen Alia Internal Airport in Amman
8:30 Departure by helicopter from the Queen Alia Internal Airport in Amman for Bethlehem
9:20 Arrival at the helicopter port of Bethlehem
9:30 ARRIVAL CEREMONY at the presidential Palace in Bethlehem
COURTESY VISIT TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE STATE OF PALESTINE
10:00 MEETING WITH THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY – Discourse of the Holy Father
11:00 HOLY MASS in Manger Square in Bethlehem. Homily of the Holy Father
REGINA COELI PRAYER. Allocution of the Holy Father
13:30 Lunch with families from Palestine in the Franciscan convent of Casa Nova in Bethlehem
15:00 PRIVATE VISIT TO THE GROTTO OF THE NATIVITY IN BETHLEHEM
15:20 GREETING OF CHILDREN FROM THE REFUGEE CAMPS OF DEHEISHEH, AIDA AND BEIT JIBRIN at the Phoenix Center of the Deheisheh Refugee Camp
15:45 FAREWELL FROM THE STATE OF PALESTINE at the helicopter port of Bethlehem
16:00 Departure by helicopter from the helicopter port of Bethlehem for Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv
16:30 ARRIVAL CEREMONY at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv. Discourse of the Holy Father
17:15 Transfer by helicopter to Jerusalem
17:45 Arrival at the helicopter port of Jerusalem on Mount Scopus
18:15 Private meeting with the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople at the Apostolic Delegation in Jerusalem. Signing of a joint declaration.
19.00 ECUMENICAL MEETING on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher. Discourse of the Holy Father
20:15 Dinner with the Patriarchs and Bishops and the Papal suite at the Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem

Monday, May 26, 2014
8:15 VISIT TO THE GRAND MUFTI OF JERUSALEM in the building of the Great Council on the Esplanade of the Mosques. Discourse of the Holy Father
9:10 VISIT TO THE WESTERN WALL in Jerusalem
9:45 Laying a wreath at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem
10.00 VISIT TO YAD VASHEM in Jerusalem. Discourse of the Holy Father
10:45 COURTESY VISIT TO THE TWO CHIEF RABBIS at Heichal Shlomo Center in Jerusalem, next to the Jerusalem Great Synagogue. Discourse of the Holy Father
11:45 COURTESY VISIT TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL at the Presidential Residence in Jerusalem. Discourse of the Holy Father
13:00 PRIVATE AUDIENCE WITH THE PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL at Notre Dame Center in Jerusalem
13:30 Lunch with the Papal suite at Notre Dame Center in Jerusalem
15:30 Private visit to the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople at the building next to the Orthodox church of Viri Galileai on the Mount of Olives
16:00 MEETING WITH PRIESTS, MEN AND WOMEN RELIGIOUS AND SEMINARIANS in the church of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives. Discourse of the Holy Father
17:20 HOLY MASS WITH THE ORDINARIES OF THE HOLY LAND AND THE PAPAL SUITE in the room of the Cenacle in Jerusalem. Homily of the Holy Father
19:30 Transfer by helicopter from the helicopter port on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem to Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv
20:00 FAREWELL FROM THE STATE OF ISRAEL at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv
20:15 Departure from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv for Ciampino Airport in Rome
23:00 Arrival at Ciampino Airport in Rome

50 Years Ago: Pope Paul VI in Jerusalem, 1964

I'm working on a major post on Pope Francis impending visit, to Jordan,  Palestine and Israel (in that  order) this weekend. But let's lso remember what Francis intends to commemorate: the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's visit to Jordan and Israel in January 1964. Unlike the peripatetic Popes of recent years, Popes then rarely left Italy; Paul VI was the first to break with that tradition. He was also the first Pope since the early days of Christianity to visit the Holy Land. It has since become rather expected, but it was extraordinary then, and also remembered for the meeting of the Pope with the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I and the subsequent cancellation of the mutul excommunications exchanged by their Catholic and Orthodox predecessors in 1054.

In 1964, Jerusalem was still divided, and the Pope  had to cross from Jordan-controlled Jerusalem to the Israeli side via the now-vanished Mandelbaum Gate. Video of Paul VI's visit in 1964:

Rare Photos of Late Ottoman Palestine

From The Times of Israel: "The Beauty of Ottoman Palestine, Lovingly Explored and Documented."

It's about a collection of early 20th century photographs held by the German Protestant Institute of Archaeology (DEIAHL) and taken by its first director, Gustaf Dalman. The article reproduces quite a few of them, some of which have been hand-colored. For the nostalgia and history buffs.

Smithsonian: First Photos of Jerusalem, 1844

Smithsonian Magazine's website has a piece on the first photos taken of Jerusalem, dating from 1844 and taken by pioneering French photographer  Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey. Take a Look.

A June 7 Military History Footnote: Why Did the Generals Enter the Old City From the East?

In my post two days ago for the 46th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, I used a photo that has become iconic from June 7, 1967 (left) showing senior Israeli Commanders entering the Old City of Jerusalem. (Left to right: Jerusalem area commander Gen. Uzi Narkiss, then-Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, and then-IDF Chief of Staff Yitzhak Rabin.) They are entering through the gate known as the Lion's Gate or St. Stephen's Gate. It is the only open gate on the eastern side of the Old City.

Those familiar with the Old City of Jerusalem but unfamiliar with the course of the 1967 war may wonder, if until June 1967 Jerusalem was divided between an Israeli-controlled new city to the west and the Jordanian-controlled east, why did the Israeli generals enter from the east?

The particular course of the Battle for Jerusalem explains the reason.

Armchair General

After a major early morning battle at Ammunition Hill to the north (map), Israeli paratroop units advanced from there and through two other axes across the 1949 ceasefire lines in the Sheikh Jarrah and Wadi al-Joz neighborhoods, modern Arab neighborhoods north of the Old City. After securing the Augusta Victoria Hospital hill north of the Mount of Olives, the Israeli paratroops found themselves to the east of the walls of the Old City.

Another iconic and often reproduced photo from June 7 shows the 55th IDF Paratroop (Reserve) Brigade on the Mount of Olives with the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount and Dome of the Rock in the background. The 55th's commander, then-Colonel Mordechai ("Motta") Gur, is the black-haired man without a helmet seen in profile in front of the Dome of the Rock.

Shortly after the photo was taken, Gur's troops entered the Old City through the Lion's Gate. When soon thereafter he broadcast the famous words "The Temple Mount is in Our Hands!" he became known throughout Israel; by the mid-1970s Gur would be the IDF Chief of Staff.

Ethiopia Elects its Jerusalem Archbishop as New Patriarch

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has elected the Ethiopian Archbishop of Jerusalem, Abune Mathias, as the church's sixth Patriarch, ironically on the same day Pope Benedict XVI stepped down as Catholic Pope.

Although Ethiopia is not generally considered a Middle Eastern country, the church has many historical links with the Middle East; until 1959, Ethiopia was a daughter church of the Coptic church of Egypt, and its heads were appointed by the Church of Alexandria. Coptic Pope Cyril VI in 1959 recognized Ethiopia as an autocephalous church that elects its own patriarch. During the years of Marxist rule in Ethiopia the church suffered considerably. Mathias spent over 30 years in exile.

Mathias had been serving as well as Archbishop of Jerusalem, where Ethiopia maintains an ancient monastery known as the Deir al-Sultan on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. A dispute with the Copts over ownership of the key has meant that the monks there who live in considerable poverty, cannot directly access the church below. The dispute remains a divisive issue between the Churches of Egypt and Ethiopia. [UPDATE: See the exchange in the Comments for more on the Ethiopian church.]

A Tale of Two Cities: The Party Vote in Jerusalem vs.Tel Aviv

Even a casual tourist surely notices the profound contrast between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and the more one gets to know each city the sharper the contrast appears. The way folks dress on the beaches of Tel Aviv and the streets of Mea Shearim in Jerusalem are at opposite poles of just about everything. If someone approaches you on the street in Jerusalem there's a fair chance they're proselytizing (for which religion depends on the part of town); in at least certain parts of Tel Aviv (the hotel and nightclub districts for example), it's likelier they're offering some form of negotiable companionship for the evening. There are things I like about each city, although as a historian, Jerusalem to me is an irreplaceable monument while Tel Aviv is almost American (with a touch of a European capital) and barely over a century old in a region of ageless cities. So it's hardly surprising that the two cities don't vote alike.

Shmuel Rosner at jewishjournal.com has a post called "Israel is a Moderate Country: 20 Short Notes on the Election." It's yet another look through infographics and pie charts at the vote results, but his No. 16, a comparison of the top five parties by votes in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, makes the point of his brief conclusion: "These are not two different cities, these are two different universes." If you don't know the parties by name, three of the five in Jerusalem are religious parties and the fourth is secular rightist Likud; only Yesh Atid is nominally centrist; in Tel Aviv none are religious parties and all are center-left except Likud:

The Snow Story

After heavy rains and extensive flooding, now we have snow across the Levant as well as in parts of Egypt. The media are showing photos of snow in Jerusalem and elsewhere (below, the Western Wall in Jerusalem and Umayyad Mosque in Damascus) and commenting on how rare it is; I've already posted some snow pictures myself, including Bashar making a snowman. But, without wanting to provoke any climate change deniers out there, I just thought I'd point out that this "extremely rare" wave of snows and floods last happened just two years ago, when I blogged about it in December 2010.

Oh (Not So) Little Town of Bethlehem

Greetings for Latin Christmas to all who celebrate today; of course for much of the Middle East, Christmas is still in the future, and my discussion of Middle Eastern Christmas customs will continue. Last night the Latin Patriarch celebrated in Bethlehem and Manger Square was filled with pilgrims and tourists, as it will be again on January 6-7. But Bethlehem's once flourishing pilgrim trade is not what it once was, as least when it isn't Christmas..

Bethlehem's location just south of the "Green Line" and the proximity of the Israeli neighborhoods/settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo, as well as the presence on the edge of town of the shrine known as Rachel's Tomb, means that few parts of the West Bank feel the presence of Israel's Separation Wall as profoundly as Bethlehem. As the struggle to control the future of the Jerusalem region intensifies, Bethlehem remains caught in the middle.

Each year we see variations on these cartoons:

It's not my purpose here, today,  to rehash the whole Israeli-Palestinian debate; we aren't going to solve it here. on Christmas. Merely to note the profound impact that conflict has had on a city we sing about but far too many never think about.

I still wish everyone Christmas greetings.

 

Advertisement from a Lost World

It looks like we're in for a grim weekend as the situation in Gaza spirals towards what may be a ground operation, so the sort of lightweight post I originally planned seems ill-timed. I thought I would leave you with a reminder of another era, of a lost world: 12 hours by bus from Cairo to Jerusalem via al-Arish, Rafah, Gaza and Jaffa. Not sure of the date, but pre-1948:

 

The Democrats and the Jerusalem Flap

I don't discuss US politics much here, though it's not always easy in a Presidential election year, and this is the first Presidential election since MEI started this blog. Opinions expressed here are my own, not MEI's, but I'm still not going to take partisan sides on US political issues, except as they involve the Middle East.

My Middle Eastern readers, however, may be puzzled by some of the rituals of the US nominating conventions, especially the strange events this afternoon relating to Jerusalem.

US policy, under Democratic and Republican Presidents, remains officially that the status of Jerusalem is a final status issue to be decided in negotiation between Israelis and Palestinians. As a result, the US Embassy in Israel, like other foreign Embassies (except for a tiny handful of Latin countries I think) remains in Tel Aviv. Our Jerusalem consulate exists in a sort of transnational status.

Nevertheless, every four years both major political parties declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel. Congress periodically votes to move the Embassy, but the President's foreign policy powers are then invoked to waive moving the embassy until a final status agreement.

For reasons still unclear (though this Laura Rozen column seems to explain it pretty well) the ritual declaration about Jerusalem was not included in this year's Democratic platform, despite otherwise extremely pro-Israeli provisions. Today an amendment from the floor was introduced to add the Jerusalem language, as well as a mention of God, which had also been omitted. The spin is that President Obama wanted these provisions included, but the result is to call attention to the ritualistic (and in real terms, rather meaningless) Jerusalem language. But it was done awkwardly, and the result was that the chairperson had to gavel through an alleged two-thirds majority on a voice vote, though only the truly faithful can hear two-thirds saying "aye" in the video below. It was handled rather poorly, but the result is not a change in US policy, just an invocation of a ritual shibboleth in American politics.

It has been asked, "why not just say that Jerusalem is the capital of both Israel and Palestine?" Good question.

Visiting a Jerusalem Landmark

Here's a recent Haaretz description of a visit to a place most people who know Jerusalem have seen, but few have visited: the elegant building which served as Government House, the British High Commissioner's Headquarters during the Mandate era and which, since 1948, has served as UN headquarters in Jerusalem. From 1948 to 1967, it sat right on the ceasefire lines, and there was a firefight there during the 1967 war. It's on a ridgeline south of the Old City, on a rise known in Christian tradition as the Hill of Evil Counsel.

Coptic Pilgrims', Egyptian Mufti's Jerusalem Visits Stir Up a Hornet's Nest

Thirty-five years ago, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat flew to Jerusalem and spoke to the Israeli Knesset. After the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, regular flights between the two countries were inaugurated. I believe it was in 1983 that I first took an El Al flight from Cairo to Ben Gurion Airport.

Israeli tourists regularly go to Egypt; few Egyptians reciprocate. There are government delegations, businessmen who travel regularly, and so on, but few private Egyptians visit; it's still stigmatized. Though Jerusalem is holy to both Christians and Muslims, neither group has traditionally made pilgrimages. The late Pope Shenouda III banned Copts from making pilgrimages to Jerusalem, and while some have done so (including at least one bishop a few years ago), the Church does not approve. (For the Copts there are two issues: Israeli occupation of the occupied territories, but also the fact that Israel has supported the Ethiopian Church in a controversy over access to the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, claimed by the Copts. This issue, the Deir al-Sultan, is worthy of a post in its own right, but let's leave that for another time.)

First, the Coptic taboo was challenged. With the approach of Easter, regular flights began carrying Coptic pilgrims to Jerusalem; some 2000 had gone by Easter. The Church still disapproves, but Shenouda is gone, and many Copts feel the ban is now collapsing.

Then the Mufti of Egypt went to Jerusalem and all hell broke loose. The senior Egyptian cleric paid a quick visit on Wednesday, prayed at the Al-Aqsa mosque, and was accompanied by the Mufti of Jerusalem and other religious figures as well as a Jordanian prince; the Mufti, Dr. ‘Ali Goma‘a,  explained on Twitter that it was an "unofficial" visit aimed at showing solidarity with the Palestinians and the rights of Jerusalem:







No official meetings with any Israelis have been reported (or even alleged), but there has been a huge uproar from Egyptians who consider such a high-level visit as somehow recognizing Israeli occupation of Jerusalem, despite his Jordanian host. The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party has  denounced it as a "gross mistake" that imposes normalization with Israel on the Egyptian people.

Zeinobia rounds up much of the debate and print pictures. Meanwhile, The Arabist puzzles over what Gomaa was thinking while also feeling the ban on travel is a mistake.  Salafis in Parliament want him fired, which is the President's prerogative (that currently being interpreted as SCAF)..

I have never understood why a religious figure visiting a religious site in Jerusalem, and having no official contact with Israelis other than what is absolutely necessary, is somehow "normalization" or recognition of the occupation. But I also recognize that coming at a time when on the one hand the Coptic taboo seems to be eroding but on the other, Egyptian-Israeli relations are extremely fragile, the Mufti's "unofficial" visit was certain to create an uproar. And it has.

The "Jerusalem Syndrome"

Many years ago, on one of my first trips of Jerusalem, I visited an American friend who had recently joined the US Foreign Service and was assigned as some sort of junior consular officer in the US Consulate in East Jerusalem. He explained at the time that as the junior consular officer present, he was the one on call to take possession from the Israeli authorities of any self-proclaimed messiahs or prophets who showed up in town or at the airport without visible means of support and with American nationality. Apparently this was a frequent enough occurrence for there to be a designated consular officer assigned the task, and other foreign consulates presumably had analogous officials. Apparently it's a pretty frequent occurrence in the holy city for someone to show up at immigration and announce that they are Jesus Christ or King David or the Jewish Messiah. (Though I assume they needed some other documentation to get through the immigration at the airport, assuming they didn't just descend from the heavens without the help of El Al.) The Israelis, at least back then, turned them over to their respective consulates (if they couldn't support themselves anyway) and let them figure out what to do with them.

I don't know what the consular arrangements may be nowadays, but this article called "The Jerusalem Syndrome" in Wired talks to an Israeli psychiatrist who interacts with many of the chosen messengers, so obviously they're still showing up in Jerusalem.

Photoshopping Out the Dome of the Rock

Israel's Haaretz notes that the Israel Defense Forces Rabbinate (the military chaplain corps in Western terms) issued a pamphlet or brochure for Hanukkah with this picture of the Western Wall:

Okay. Inspirational religious image. Obviously Photoshopped to imply the divine presence over the Temple Mount.

But anyone who knows Jerusalem may feel there's something missing here. Like this:

That's right. They also Photoshopped out the Dome of the Rock. The argument that it wasn't there at the first Hanukkah has been used as an excuse, but then shouldn't they have Photoshopped in the Second Temple?

First Surviving Film Footage of Jerusalem: 1896

 A YouTube video (with a modern narrator) of the oldest video of Jerusalem, taken in 1896:

Bethlehem's Christmas: A Good Turnout

Bethlehem seems to have ha a good Latin Christmas, making up for the dip last year. Reportedly a 60% increase in pilgrims. Here is a roundup of some videos and reports from last Friday and Saturday:

A video of good turnout in Bethlehem:



A Palestine News Network report on Christmas Eve in Bethlehem:



A BBC report on the usual quarrels over who gets to repair the roof of the Church of the Nativity; it seems the Palestinian Authority is stepping in to get things done. The video doesn't embed so you need to follow the link.



An Al Jazeera report and article:




Another Al Jazeera English report on Palestinian tour agencies taking tourists to different sites:




Another piece on Syrian Christians in Jerusalem:

Weekend Historical Videos: the Holy Land 1911 to the 1930s

For my weekly Weekend Historical Videos, I thought it might be seasonally appropriate to show some video of the Holy Land in early travelogues and films. General Allenby entered Jerusalem on December 11, 1917, on foot (because the Kaiser had ridden a white horse, and many commented that Jesus had been satisfied with a donkey). Allenby, whose arrival in Jerusalem is shown on some of the WWI videos I've previously posted, said the taking of Jerusalem from the Turks was "a Christmas present for the British people." Thirty years later the British would not be so thankful for the Mandate. But taking Bethlehem and Jerusalem at Christmas, when the Western Front was still bogged down and Russia was leaving the war, was seen as symbolic. Allenby walking into Jerusalem is shown beginning at the 0:40 second mark on this clip:



Even earlier, this is alleged to be the first film of Palestine, made in 1911:



Most travelogues of the early Mandate era tended to emphasize Christian sites in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, so they're seasonally appropriate. The earliest ones are silent, of course. Many represent the classic travelogue view of the Holy Land (camels, donkeys, "just like in the Bible," unchanging people). I hope running these doesn't reinforce the stereotype; there are a few shots here which aren't as cliche-ridden.

Gethsemane and Bethlehem 1929 (also and inevitably, camels):



Hebron in the 1920s: Old pics of the Haram al-Khalil/Tombs of the Patriarchs, other sites, and of course lots of camels:



Jerusalem in the 20s: Jaffa Gate, Herod's Gate, old cars:



Damascus to Jerusalem, 1932:



Jerusalem 1930: Part Two; I couldn't find part one:



Another Jerusalem in the 1930s



And still stereotypical, Damascus and Jerusalem in 1938 (made for Western audiences, emphasis on camels, donkeys, and "time never changes" themes):



Just for contrast in narratives (and as a lesson in how to frame your message), here's a video presumably made in the Zionist Yishuv about Tel Aviv, an early color video, and clearly sending a completely different message:

More on Coptic Tensions in Egypt

If it seems as if this blog has devoted more time to Coptic-Muslim issues this year, it is because Coptic-Muslim issues in the last six months or so have reached levels of tension, and vitriol, rare in recent times. As a perusal of this blog's Copts topic will reveal, we've had the dispute betweeen church and state over divorce, and then its sudden resolution; the long-running and still tense dispute over the Camillia Shehata "conversion" (or non-conversion?); Bishop Bishoy's foot-in-mouth provocation of Muslims and, in response, an Al-Azhar Salafi group questioning Christians' right to citizenship, as well as Pope Shenouda's criticism/non-criticism of Bishoy.

And that's just since July: if you go back to January you had the Nag Hammadi killings.

Adding to all this, of course, is the presumably imminent double succession: Husni Mubarak is 82 and Pope Shenouda III is 87, and both are in uncertain health. Certainly Coptic-Muslim tensions have not been exacerbated to this degree since 1981, when Anwar Sadat deposed Shenouda and sent him to a desert monastery, though these days the Church and State tend to be on the same side, with Islamists and ordinary Muslims on the other.

In the midst of this, here are a couple of additions: First, Mariz Tadros has a good summary of the issues at MERIP. It may be easier to read it than to click on all my blogpost links above.

Now, there's s story in yesterday's Al-Masry al-Youm that may or may not relate to the internal and external maneuverings of the Church. It seems Bishop Theodosius of Giza left Wednesday for Jerusalem, and a pilgrimage to Christian sites there. It also reports that he has previously visited the Coptic Bishop of Jerusalem and has other Israeli visas in his passport.

Now, after he Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, Pope Shenouda banned Copts from making pilgrimage to Jerusalem, in part over the Palestinian issue, in part because the Coptic Church blames Israel for taking sides in a religios turf dispute. The Coptic Church and its daughter Church, the Church of Ethiopia, have long engaged in a bitter dispute over the Deir al-Sultan, a monastery that occupies part of the rooftop of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Israel backed the Ethiopians, jand they occupy the Deir today, impoverished and unable to enter the Church below because the Copts bar the way. So in theory at least, Bishop Theodosius is, as the headline claims, defying a papal ban.

But I'm struck by several things. First, if this list of the Coptic Holy Synod is in fact current, Theodosius is only the Auxiliary Bishop of Giza, number 46 on the list in seniority while Metropolitan Domadius of Giza is number four. Second, if he has done this one or more times before without being disciplined, it may well be that he is serving as a liaison to the Coptic Church of Jerusalem; the papal ban applied to individual Copts, but perhaps not to hierarchy on Church business.

In any event, and despite the fact that Al-Masry al-Youm has some Coptic ownership and a generally favorable approach, I suspect this report is more a symptom of current high levels of attention to things Coptic, rather than a real story of episcopal defiance. Let's see if there is any follow-up.