Following a series of low-magnitude earthquakes felt in Israel and neighboring countries in early July, Kamal Zakarneh, a columnist for the Jordanian daily Al-Dustour, wrote that the quakes may have been caused by the underground testing of nuclear or other weapons that Israel is developing. The weapons, he speculated further, may be intended to cause an artificial earthquake to topple Al-Aqsa, the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.[1]
The following are excerpts from his column:[2]
Image: Al-Quds (Jerusalem), July 8, 2018
"Suddenly and quietly, the earthquakes in the northern part of the [Jordanian] kingdom stopped, and tremors are no longer emanating from the belly of the earth to rattle everything upon it. It's as if whatever was causing these tremors has moved to some other site, and is waiting for a different mission. The quakes, which were centered around the Sea of Galilee and its region and whose magnitude was around four on the Richter scale, raise many questions as to their cause, location and timing. They may have been caused by detonations carried out by the occupation army deep underground, beneath the Sea of Galilee, to test new weapons, such as small nuclear bombs with limited range, or else conventional weapons for use against the armies in the region, which the occupation state regards... as a threat, to some extent. Perhaps these [tests] are in preparation for carrying out an enormous crime against the Muslim and Christian holy sites in occupied Jerusalem, especially against the Al-Aqsa mosque, the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Sepulcher, by causing an artificial earthquake beneath them to destroy them, in preparation for building the fake [Jewish] temple as part of the plan to Judaize Jerusalem.
"The occupation [state] cannot be trusted, for it plans, plots and eventually also destroys [its targets] in order to achieve political, geographical and Biblical aims. It does not hesitate to use all the entire arsenal of technology, knowledge and scientific [expertise] at its disposal in order to complete its expansionist plan while blaming nature [for the devastation it causes]. Nor will it be ashamed to ask for assistance from the countries of the region and the world in order to cover up its crimes and carry out its Judaization plan at their expense...
"What increases the suspicion that the occupation is involved in causing the recent earthquakes is the fact that it has done nothing and taken no precautions in preparation for the large earthquake that its own expert geologists claim is bound to follow the small tremors. It continued to monitor from afar the global reactions to its nonsense, and when it understood that its tricks had been exposed and that nobody was fooled by them, it stopped the experiments...
"Geologists are not convinced that what happened was really a [natural] earthquake, but tend to think that it was the result of deliberate actions by the occupation army, because the epicenter of the quakes was beneath the Sea of Galilee... In the coming days, everyone must be cautious and alert to [further] surprises that the occupation may be preparing in order to achieve its historical aims, which must be carefully studied and kept in mind."
[1] It should be noted that Nasser Al-Lahham, chief editor of the Palestinian news agency Maan, has also published an article implying that Israel is responsible for the recent earthquakes. Titled "Earthquake or Plot to Destroy Al-Aqsa?", the article began with the sentence: "Many people have stopped me in the street and asked me: 'Is a devastating earthquake on the way, or is this a Zionist plot to destroy Al-Aqsa?'" The article goes on to lament the fact that the Arabs have no geological institutes of their own to supply information on earthquakes and have to rely instead on the Israeli media. Maannews.net, July 11, 2018.
[2] Al-Dustour (Jordan), July 14, 2018.
