Saturday, July 16, 2011

Museum of Tolerance to be build on contested ground


The Israeli government has approved a plan to build a museum dedicated to tolerance and co-existence over a centuries-old Muslim graveyard in Jerusalem. The project, which has been delayed for years by Muslim opposition, is being sponsored by the US-based Jewish Group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center. The irony of a Jewish-sponsored Museum of Tolerance going up in part on a Muslim cemetery has made the project a target for critics since it was announced in 2003. The building will be designed by Israeli firm Chyutkin Architects following Frank Gehry's decision to withdraw from the project. Read more
Image: The fenced off construction site for Jerusalem's Museum of Tolerance