Elad in the news

POLITICS: TAU to take part in East Jerusalem dig funded by pro-settlement group: Silwan residents say excavations in City of David promote Elad's political agenda. Tel Aviv University: It's an academic project (Haaretz). Excerpt:

Critics question the role of Elad in the dig. “It's hard to believe that the Antiques Authority, with its meager budget, has suddenly found sources to fund someone else's projects,” says archaeologist Yoni Mizrachi of Emek Shaveh.

TAU archaeologist Prof. Rafael Greenberg, another Emek Shaveh activist, is more outspoken: “This is a clear politicization of research. Whoever is familiar with the area is aware that all the diggings are annexed to Elad, supervised by Elad, and separate from the site of the City of David. In practice, the project is to become part of Elad's settlement drive.”

Rejecting the criticism, TAU Institute of Archaeology Director Prof. Oded Lipschitstold Haaretz that academic standards would be maintained. “The heart of biblical archaeology is in Jerusalem and the City of David. For that reason, I approached the Antiquities Authority and expressed our will to carry out work in the area,” Lipschits said. “The goal of the digging at the City of David is to carry out a form of 'clean' archaeology. Of course the project has to take into consideration the elements active in the site and running the national park. We will cooperate with Elad, since they run the site, but we will maintain our standards. We won't agree to be subjected to political interests."

For background on Elad, see here and links.