Haber said the most significant thing about the bath, known as a mikveh, was its location overlooking the Temple esplanade.
“We are in the wealthy neighborhood of the city on the eve of its destruction,” she said.
While the elevator project is less contentious, development or archaeology excavations in Jerusalem, a city is holy to three faiths, often take on a political dimension. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their hoped-for state, while Israel considers the entire city as its eternal, undivided capital.
Israel captured east Jerusalem, which includes the Old City and holy sites to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 war. It later annexed east Jerusalem in a move unrecognized by most of the international community.
This article originally appeared here.
