THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 28, 1996 TAG: 9609280225
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL SIZEMORE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 71 lines
Lillian Kozak had no idea she was walking into an international incident. She was just enjoying her first trip to Israel, land of her Jewish forebears.
But the Chesapeake grandmother realized something was awry Thursday when her tour group emerged from the newly opened exit of the tunnel at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's old walled city. Their route was lined with Israeli soldiers, automatic weapons at the ready.
As it turned out, Kozak was among the few tourists to get through the controversial tunnel that sparked the worst fighting between Israelis and Palestinians in decades, shattering a fragile Mideast peace.
Kozak, 69, left Chesapeake on Tuesday. She and a cousin from Baltimore are staying with relatives in Betar Elite, a suburb on the east side of Jerusalem. She is due back home Oct. 11.
``We really picked a time to come,'' she said in a telephone interview Friday.
Tuesday night, on orders from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, workers opened a new entrance to the Temple Mount tunnel at the Via Dolorosa, the path that Jesus is said to have taken on his way to the crucifixion.
The tunnel runs along a critical fault line between the Jewish and Muslim sectors of old Jerusalem. At one end is the Western Wall, or ``wailing wall,'' one of Judaism's holiest sites. Nearby are the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosque, two of Islam's holiest shrines.
The tunnel, which retraces an ancient roadway rediscovered in 1987, has become a major tourist attraction with its spectacular collection of artifacts from Jerusalem's rich and fractious history.
The new entrance opened this week is in the Muslim quarter. Muslims believe the Israeli action undermines their position in the contest for control over Jerusalem's holy sites - a key unresolved issue in the broken-down peace process.
``I didn't realize there was any tension at first,'' Kozak said. ``But when we stopped at the Temple Mount, two soldiers walked in.
``Our guide was speaking to us. As the soldiers passed by, you could see in his eyes that things were not perfect.
``When you come out of the tunnel, you walk through the Muslim section. Our guide told us we would have to stick together.
``When we walked out, we had Israeli soldiers on all sides of us, with their machine guns and rifles ready. All the Muslim shops were closed and locked up.''
Gradually it dawned on Kozak that she could have been swept up in the spreading violence.
``We were quite thankful afterwards,'' she said. ``We went to the Western Wall and prayed.''
The fighting spread Friday to the Al Aqsa compound, and police ordered Jews to stop praying at the Western Wall. The tunnel that triggered the violence was closed. Police said the site is always closed on Jewish holidays - Friday was the start of the Sukkot holiday - and the decision was not linked to the riots.
But Netanyahu is under pressure from Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat - and, privately, the United States - to keep the tunnel closed.
Despite the violence, Kozak said she is undeterred.
``People in the states say, `Oh, I would never go to a country where there is stress or terrorism,' '' she said. ``Well, I guess something is wrong with me. I feel safe and secure as can be.''
Next week, Kozak's itinerary includes a trip to Hebron, a West Bank town that has been the site of repeated clashes between Israelis and Palestinians, including the slaughter of 40 Muslim worshipers by a Jewish militant at a mosque in 1994.
``If the bus takes us to Hebron, I'm going to Hebron,'' Kozak said. ``There's quite a lot of Jewish history there that I want to see.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo
Lillian Kozak by CNB