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The Cyrus Debate Confirms the Truth of Jewish History in Jerusalem

(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Rivkah Fishman-Duker - Ishaan Tharoor of the Washington Post sets out to disparage U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's Oct. 29 tweet in praise of Cyrus the Great, who ruled the Persian Empire in the 6th century BCE. Tharoor correctly notes, "[a]ccording to sources including biblical scripture, Cyrus allowed the Judeans deported and exiled following the ravages of Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II to return to their homeland." He reminds the world that the Temple was in Jerusalem, the capital of Judah, and acknowledges the Jewish presence here long before Islam and the Palestinians. This runs counter to the Palestinian narrative which claims that the Jews are not the indigenous people. The tremendous popular response that the ancient King of Persia still evokes among Iranians stands diametrically opposed to the ideology of the Islamic Republic of Iran. But Cyrus was a conqueror and not a humanitarian, though his policies included religious tolerance. The writer is a Lecturer Emerita in Ancient Jewish History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
2019-11-04 00:00:00
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