If the right-wing Jews who have moved into the Arab Ras al-Amud neighbourhood on the slopes of Jerusalem's Mount of Olives are not out by tomorrow, nobody should be surprised if Palestinian protests turn violent, writes David Horovitz, in Jerusalem.That's the essence of the warning being communicated by Palestinian leaders to Israel's Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu. Publicly, the Palestinian Authority President, Mr Yasser Arafat, has spoken vaguely only of "a negative reaction" if the new Jewish arrivals are not swiftly removed. The top Palestinian official in Jerusalem, Mr Faisal Husseini, said yesterday that nobody was issuing ultimatums. But behind the scenes, the Palestinian leadership, having been assured by Mr Netanyahu earlier this week that this latest time bomb would be smoothly defused, is indicating that time is running out.
Mr Netanyahu, who has now cancelled visits to Romania and Hungary, is desperately seeking a way out. But, as a Labour opposition Knesset member, Mr Shlomo Ben-Ami, noted dryly yesterday, "he rode a tiger to power, and now the beast has turned on him".
That tiger comes in the form of Mr Irving Moskowitz, a Florida-based retired doctor and bingo multi-millionaire, who has purchased buildings and land at Ras al-Amud, rented out one small complex to several Jewish families, flown to Jerusalem to offer them moral support and join them in prayer, and steadfastly refused repeated entreaties from Mr Netanyahu to move them.
Today, the Israeli Supreme Court is to hear a petition brought by Mr Moskowitz designed to prevent the government from forcibly evicting his tenants.
Given the court's long-standing reluctance to intervene in such sensitive issues, and given the potential for violence directly stemming from the new Jewish presence at Ras al-Amud - where rowdy Palestinian demonstrations last night saw five people injured - Mr Moskowitz is unlikely to succeed.
But that does not necessarily mean Mr Netanyahu will send in the troops. In opposition, he habitually attacked his Labour prime ministerial predecessors for their perceived capitulation to Palestinian dictates over Jerusalem. He defied Palestinian opposition in ordering building work at Har Homa on the outskirts of East Jerusalem last spring - a move that led to the suspension of peace talks. On the other hand, to let the families stay would be a slap in the face for the recently departed American Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, who begged him to avoid provocative moves. It could also hasten the onset of direct, armed confrontation with the Palestinians at a time when Israeli military intelligence is already warning of the possibility of a "guerrilla war" breaking out.
David Horovitz is managing editor of the Jerusalem Report