PA PM: Israel “has not found any archaeological artifact” that confirms its narrative

Headline: “Shtayyeh: Jerusalem is a twin of Mecca, and we are the salt of the earth and will continue to defend it and its Arab and Islamic nation”

“The [PA] presidential institution held a dinner yesterday evening, Monday [Oct. 14, 2019], in honor of the Saudi national football team delegation.

[PA] Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh and [Palestinian] Football Association Chairman Jibril Rajoub were present at the dinner…

Shtayyeh said: ‘We are currently dealing with a series of racist steps and actions by the Israeli occupation, and you saw this in the visit to Jerusalem, and you saw how Israel is stealing our land and building settlements on it, and it has been continuing the excavations under the Al-Aqsa Mosque since 1967 in order to confirm its narrative, but it has not found any archaeological artifact of what it claims (sic., Israel does not excavate under the Temple Mount; numerous archaeological artifacts have been found proving the Jewish connection to Israel).’”

Jibril Rajoub also holds the following positions: Fatah Central Committee Secretary, Head of the PLO Supreme Council for Youth and Sports, Chairman of the Palestine Olympic Committee, and Chairman of the Palestinian Scout Association (PSA).

Excavations under the Temple Mount - The Israeli daily Haaretz has stated that the excavations do not reach beneath the mosque: "Despite complaints from the Islamic Movement and Palestinian groups, not a single dig penetrates beneath the [Temple] Mount." [Haaretz, May 24, 2016]