'Terrorists Control Portion of Mount of Olives'

Jerusalem City Council Member, Arieh King, visited the Mount of Olives Saturday night, and returned from the trip shaken. 

"The Israeli government has decided to abandon the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives and in recent weeks, terrorists have taken control of large parts of the mountain," King wrote of the ancient site on his Facebook page. 

Several weeks ago, the gravestone of the Hassidic leader, the Grand Rebbe of Modzitz, Rabbi Yisrael Dan Taub was destroyed, along with the gravestones of dozens of others, including several well-known rabbis. 

Vandalism at the Mount of Olives cemetery is a rampant problem. In the past, Jewish visitors have filed hundreds of complaints regarding rock-throwing attacks by Arabs, and vandalism of the graves of loved ones.

"The police and security guards at the cemetery - placed there by the government - do not even deal with the terrorists", said King. "Last night, the holy Saturday night of Parshat Noach, the roads leading to the burial plots looked like the entrance to a refugee camp." 

"The terrorists set fire to tires and threw Molotov cocktails at the burial cave of the Admor of Gur. Tall pillars of security cameras were set on fire and uprooted, fences were broken and had been torn out. Gravestones were smashed."

King added that "due to Saturday night's pogrom, next Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 (October 28, 2014) we will gather at the Gur section on the Mount of Olives at 2:30 p.m. for prayer and outcrying. We expect anyone with a Jewish heart that's burning to participate."

The Mount of Olives is one of a number of areas in the capital facing an upsurge in Arab violence in the past several months, dubbed the "silent intifada". The nearby neighborhood of Maaleh Hazeitim is regularly targeted by rioters, and a Jewish kindergarten has been attacked twice in recent weeks by Arab extremists.

But the area was regularly targeted by Arab vandals beforehand as well, who defiled ancient Jewish graves and attacked worshipers and family members traveling to visit the site.