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Jerusalem: City of David

October 17, 2010 5:00 PM

Lesley Stahl reports from under the city of Jerusalem from a controversial archeological dig that has become a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Controversy in Jerusalem: The City Of David

60 Minutes OverTimeJerusalem: The City of David?

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by e6ssggladu December 29, 2011 12:08 PM EST
I do not understand why the Jewish Population of the world is not allowed to have their own country? Also I do not understand when ever the Clintions are mentioned in the same text as Isreal it is all ways in terms and out come for the Jews. The Clintons are Antisemites no questions about it and Hillery was place as the Sec of State just so she can contiune thier dislike for the Jews. and the way our retard President is supporting thier goals. It is also important to note that the reporter (if you want to call her that) had no intentions of even acknowledge that the caves and tunnels she was walking in could have come from Davids time. She was there just to comfront the Jewish people and tell them that she and the world do not care anything about the Jews. As far as I am concerned the U.N should be destroyed instead of the Nation of Isreal.
We as the United States need to hunt down the anti semites and all those that want to Discourage people from any religous morals and destroy them or send them to an island so they can only do damage to themselves. It would be intresting to see what Tom Cruz and Opra would do to each other
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by Manoel1212 December 10, 2011 11:43 AM EST
We need to know the true story of Yisrael.
is written in the Bible and Torah
King David conquered YERUSHALEYN,
to Yisrael, from generation to generation.
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by mthielk June 17, 2011 1:29 AM EDT
It is great that 60 minutes has courage to speak the truth to power. In this case power is the Israel lobby and the US media. It is very rare that anyone in this country criticizes Israeli policy. The mayor makes it clear that he is only interested in tourism to a Jewish Jerusalem, no concern for the Palestinians. To say that the soldiers are brought there to learn about what they are fighting for, is to confirm that the project is purely political, a justification for taking more land. This is not biased as some Zionists would claim, it was mainly Jewish leaders telling it the way they see it. If anything it could be called Zionist propaganda being questioned. And when pressed it doesn't even matter if there is no evidence of king David. It is about religious belief pure and simple. When land is taken based on ancient religious beliefs hatred in created, terrorism is created. It is obvious that the mayor and Mr. Spielman don't care about anything other than their Zionist agenda. And Even though we fund them, protect them with UN vetoes, and fight their enemies, they don't care about the US either. These actions cause as much hatred toward the US as it does toward Israel. It is a religious agenda to take land by any means necessary. It is great that 60 minutes was able to shed a little light on this. Thank you.
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by jojob18 June 13, 2011 6:32 PM EDT
You know I find it hard to watch someone who doesn't do enough RESEARCH in ALL AREAS.
It makes them look unprofessional as well as one sided.


Has the woman or whom-ever does the research on these hot debateable topics even looked at the digging- illegal and dumping on the arab side?
What about the large rocks that are thrown down with the intention to kill or maim-
Are your interviewers impartial enough to say this isn't right no matter whether you believe you have been wronged - Since when do we condon hurting , killing , targeting , burning, gutting or blowing up things? Because someone thinks their owed something?????

Where are all these concerned people while the digging is going on under the Western Wall and who knows how many thousands of years worth of ancient history is being dumped in the garbage - not to mention that the arabs that are doing this digging with the hope to make the wall unstable so that it will eventually cave in?
Sounds like the " Interviewer already had made up her mind and taken sides and was slanting her so called unbiased interview for her viewers.
Very disapointed in CBS-(Walter Cronkeit she isn't)
as they have managed to join the ranks of the NEWS media that don't give the facts as much as make up the minds of their viewers for them.

Since when is promoting Violence - and making a case for one side - OFFERING INFORMATIVE NEWS?
Isn't that what we call a personal view?
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by stantheman777 January 17, 2011 12:09 AM EST
JERUSALEM: "A Cup of Trembling" Every single human being on planet earth cannot justifiably point the finger at any one race of people and condemn all of them as corrupt. There has never been one race, or color, on this earth that has not suffered from some form of corrupt leadership due to the greed for wealth and power. In every race/nationality you will find good and evil. For instance, as an example, look at blacks and whites. In Rwanda, what about the horrible slaughter of blacks killing blacks? In South Africa, blacks sold blacks into slavery long before the white people came along. Also, the white people have been at war with other white people before the blacks appeared on the scene. What about the Gulf War?.Arabs against Arabs and Muslims against Muslims? There is violence in every single nation and every single culture. No one is innocent except God's little children. Individually speaking, the problem is in the human heart. We are all guilty (in varying degrees) of self-indulgence, self-pity, etc. Instead of esteeming others, we fill ourselves to death with self-esteem. We have been continually conditioned to believe that we can only love others if we learn to love ourselves first. That is the best lying bait ever dangled on a hook. We eagerly grab it and swallow?..hook, line, and sinker. Why, because it inflates our ego. This is proof that we definitely love ourselves first. Human nature is to love ourselves first and to satisfy ourselves first. Our nature is one continuous ego trip. We don't have to learn selfishness. It comes naturally. From the time we are small children, we need to be taught to love. From love, comes the forgiveness that heals. However, real love also demands justice. The only true love that exists has nothing to do with our depraved cultural "Hollywood-style" of so-called "love". The only way is by moral example. What are a few of the greatest acts of love? The Americans who responded to the victims of the 9/11 attack and nature's destructive Katrina were tremendous acts of love. The attack on 9/11 was a vicious cowardly act, no different than the one at Pearl Harbor in 1941. There was no doubt as to the identity of the enemy at Pearl Harbor. There is no doubt as to the identity of the enemy on 9/11, and it certainly wasn't the Jews. And yet, why the consistent attack against the Jews? It is their fault for everything? We've been systematically conditioned for decades with the vicious rumor that they all are corrupt and greedy, until the disease of hate has spread like a cancer. How does that make us feel?..superior? We are all good and they are all bad. Is that it? We can feel better about ourselves because we are the loveable good guys, and they are the evil culprits? In reality, the unvarnished absolute truth is that it has all been a religious issue and nothing but a worldwide religious issue. Jews will face more persecution, but then the day of the Lord will arrive, right on schedule, according to God's timetable. Want proof? For thousands of years, God's prophetic word has been 100% accurate. That is more than enough proof. The Lord God will have the final word concerning Israel, and all the earth ?.. "I am going to make Jerusalem a cup [filled with God's wrath] that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling"............ "On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem." [Zechariah 12:2, 9]
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by stantheman777 January 10, 2011 4:27 PM EST
Hi cantrellg,
You appeared a little upset over the Jews being called God's "chosen" people. You are not the only one that has misunderstood the meaning. The real problem, however, is the lack of knowledge according to what I had stated previously: "To have wisdom is to acknowledge that the author of the greatest history book ever written contains the living, breathing word of God." Even before the foundation of the world, God knew His plan from the beginning of His creation to the end of our world system. God chose His prophets to reveal Himself through to the rest of mankind. Through the bloodline of King David would be born their Messiah. No human being was ever chosen because they were even lovable, let alone perfect. Heaven forbid! It's almost funny! If God waited for perfect people for His plans, no one would ever have been chosen. The Messiah never would have come. There would be no chance in hell for anyone to get to heaven. As for God intervening on Israel's behalf, don't worry. God is right on schedule, but according to His own timetable, not ours. In the meantime, Israel has every right to defend herself. Take a walk in the shoes of a Jew. How would you like to be surrounded by enemies who hate you just because you are a Jew? How would it feel to be told that you don't even have the right to exist and that your enemies want to wipe you, your family, and all your people off the face of the earth? Think how you would feel about that. How would you feel if your nation was "ripped" out from under you and you were unwanted everywhere you tried to live with your loved ones. Hitler's madness murdered over six million Jews. It's a historical fact! He would have succeeded in his diabolical mad plan of complete extermination, but God did intervene. He put His promise to the Jews in motion. He promised that one day He would begin gathering them from around the world and make them a nation again. After World War II, He kept that promise, as usual! If people would only just try to imagine what an immense, awesome, and powerful Creator He is, they would think twice about their arrogance and disobedience. He is the God of love and forgiveness, but a perfect love demands perfect justice. Where there is reward, there is also punishment in this life as well as the next. Just to give only one hint of His majestic power, did you know: if you traveled at the speed of light (186,000 miles a second, which would equal about six trillion miles a year), it would take you ten billion years to reach the farthest point that could be seen through a telescope? How about what it would cost you for a trip to the moon, or the sun, or the nearest star if it cost you one cent every 1000 miles? In comparison, the moon trip would probably cost less than a Starbuck's cup of coffee. However, the nearest star would be in the millions of dollars. That's only the tip of the iceberg. So, what's the point? Just how immense and powerful is the Creator God who created a universe so vast that we could never comprehend it? Man could never figure out how He created even one magnificent cell within our bodies, with all the codes. Also, think on this. Out of all the gods that people have worshiped for thousands of years, not one, no not one, has ever revealed himself/herself to show they even exist. Not a peep, not a squeak. Absolutely nothing!! Only the God of the Bible has proven Himself a million times over, including the great historical flood, the factual history of King David, and the history of His chosen people. His historic prophecies are being fulfilled today. However, how much longer will His patience stand for the great increase of depravity and greed in the world, including America? Since every single prophecy for thousands of years has come true, in detail, would you be interested in the last one? No one needs to worry about global warming from melting ice glaciers. The next "warming" will be with fire, and that is a future historical fact, and not some religious fiction.
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by DivineDoctor December 20, 2010 12:32 AM EST
This piece surprises me. I have been a fan of Sixty Minutes and Leslie Stahl for decades. This is a subject that I know intimately, having lived in Jerusalem over a period of years as a student since 1968.
Ms. Stahl seems to know very little about her subject and shows a great deal of hostility to her hosts, who all seem to be very cordial.
Leslie should read Professor David Flusser's book on Nineteenth Century Jerusalem or even Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain, in order to see the Jewish reality of the Old City of Jerusalem (often today referred to as East or Arab Jerusalem).
Already by 1850, the Old City of Jerusalem that Ms. Stahl was visiting, was a majority Jewish. Long before 1947 and the Partitioning of Palestine Plan and 1948 with the Israeli War of Independence.
The so-called West Jerusalem that Ms. Stahl refers to, began as a need for new housing as the Jewish Old City burgeoned and new neighborhoods outside of the Ottoman Walls were needed to accomodate so many Jews in the Nineteenth Century.
When I first visited the Old City in 1968, all of the Jewish homes, institutions and synagogues were already in ruins. I walked over the rubble left from the Jordanian Legion troops that had destroyed the Jewish neighborhoods and forced the surrender of the Jewish inhabitants who were represented by great rabbinic sages, inhabitants of the city.
Many of my teachers in the 1960's had been born in the Old City and one of my teachers told me that he was the fifth generation Jerusalemite in his family.
Your Sixty Minutes segment does a real injustice to the honest, decent, hardworking people, who are trying in so many human ways to restore the greatness and beauty to a precious gem that has been defiled.
It is time for Sixty Minutes to do its homework before working on a piece. You clearly have violated many principles dear to the honest profession of journalism.
An apology is in order, as is a clarification on your program and website.
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by Imeinanilimili December 19, 2010 5:10 PM EST
Lesley Stahl was very confrontational and not neutral. To those who are apposing to the archaeological works done in Jerusalem, I would like to remind them that Archaeology is usually done under the ground so there should be excavation and Israel is not doing anything unusual.
Jerusalem was not important to the Muslim until it was unified by Israel and it was not mentioned in the Quoran even one time so how come it becomes so important. The mosque is not a proof for its importance to the Muslims. It is a fact that wherever Muslim invaded, they built mosques on top of synagogues and churches.
The reason why many Jews in The Holy Land today cannot trace their family roots is because they were exiled from there few times. I, for example do not come from Poland or Germany but from Babylon-known now as Iraq-where my ancestors were exiled to.
I am amazed of the professionalism of CBN when they happened to be in the right place at the right time and being in the right angle so they could film the accident in Silwan!!!!! Didn't Lesley say that children were throwing stones???? Children???? Isn't that irresponsible of the adults to let the children to be in a dangerous place?? Or maybe it is how CBS wanted to production to be. This looks like the production of the incident of Ahmed Al Dura who supposed to be killed by the Israelis and the French TV chose to show only part of the truth. By the way they have been sued and found guilty.
Jawad Siyam is angry that El Ad bought his grandmother's house? Why did they agree to sell it???
Lesley and CBS get your facts right before bashing Israel.
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by DavidBoullata December 1, 2010 1:09 PM EST
Doron Spielman says, at about 10 minutes into this piece that "...the Arabs have Mecca, they have Medina...but for the Jews this is our only home". This statement alone reveals the naivet? of this movement to resettle the world's Jewish population in Palestine.

This idea that somehow the entire (non-Jewish) population of Palestine came from "somewhere else" (Saudi Arabia perhaps based on his statement), that they appeared suddenly just as the Jewish state in Palestine was about to come to fruition, is pure fantasy! And sadly this reverie is what drives most Zionists to do what they are doing.

Modern Palestinians are the actual descendants of the biblical Jews and Canaanites. The ones who remained in The Holy Land, who endured 2000 years of history including multiple invasions and religious crusades. Modern Palestinians are the sum total of everything that has happened, politically, religiously and ethnically in the region since before the Roman occupation.

Not all, but most Jews in The Holy Land today can trace their family roots back maybe one or 2 generations, to European countries like Germany, Poland, France and Russia. They came seeking asylum from European anti-semitism...only to dish out the same on their closest living biological relatives. It's time to wake up from the fantasy about the "land without a people for a people without a land".

The idea of a Jewish state in Palestine was shortsighted and naive. I'm not proposing we try and turn the clock back, I'm proposing that we move forward out of this rut we have created.

The only solution in my mind is the one state solution. One democratic and secular state, encompassing all of historic Palestine (Gaza, West Bank, Israel) where all Jews, Muslims and Christians have the freedom to travel and pray as they choose and have the same rights as each other.

Peace in the Holy Land will be the spark that ignites peace worldwide.

Make the Holy Land Whole!
??e?is?
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by northwoods2 November 19, 2010 9:12 AM EST
The Zionists that critisize this report should look to other Israeli archeologists that have said "in Silwan, archeology is a tool to disenfranchize Palestinians". Do I believe anything El Ad "alleged archeologists" claim to have found to justify stealing land. The sickness of the religious fanatics in Israel is growing. We have Rabbi Yosef saying non-Jews were created to serve the Jews and therefore can be killed with impunity, a belief held by the settlers and the ultra-orthodox. A popular book, Torat HaMelech, in Israel is a justification for Jews to kill non-Jews and and even their babies
pre-emptively. Israel's Rabbis are matching anything coming from the ayatollahs. Judaism hardly seems like a peaceful or loving religion.
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