Israeli archaeologists on Wednesday criticized the extension of an underground cable at Jerusalem's holiest site for Muslims and Jews, saying digging the trench defies professional standards for such a sensitive historic site and could damage Bible-era relics.
Islamic authorities responsible for Al Aqsa Mosque complex, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, said the digging is necessary infrastructure work at the site to replace 40-year-old electrical cables ahead of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
The site is at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is home to Al Aqsa Mosque and the gold-capped Dome of the Rock, Islam's third-holiest shrine. It is also the holiest site in Judaism: archaeological finds show that the remains of the temples are beneath the mosque compound, though Muslim clerics dispute that.
I know, I know, you can't swing a dead cat there without hitting someone who's ticked off at someone else.
Also, insert Nadia Abu-el-Hadj joke [here].