The Truman Institute in Israel will host a conference on Wednesday on the future of the Temple Mount, called “The Temple Mount Riots: Islamic Movement and the Israeli Arabs”. The conference, held at the Abba Eban Hall at the Truman Institute, will attempt to understand the recent violence centered around the Temple Mount with the stated goal of moving towards a renewal of the peace process and coexistence. The participants will discuss religious rights on the Mount and Muslim issues in east Jerusalem.

The conference will explore what lessons can be learned from the recent outbreak of violence and consider its future consequences, taking into account that the Islamic Movement and the Temple Mount are at the core of the issue.

The speakers will include Professor Hillel Cohen, an Israeli scholar who studies and writes about Jewish-Arab relations; Amir Cheshin, former adviser to the mayor on issues pertaining to east Jerusalem; Dr. Mutstafa Mohand, who is close with the Islamic Movement and has recently finished research on the Movement and its place in Israeli society; and Dr. Inbal Tal, who deals with the media and the Islamic Movement.

Also speaking at the conference will be Knesset Member Miki Levi (Yesh Atid Party), who will address the security issues facing the city and the Temple Mount, which he calls “the volcano”. MK Dr. Yousef Jibareen (Joint Arab List) will also speak, describing his vision of the future for the al-Aqsa Mosque.

Eran Tzidkiyahu, a tour guide who is fighting what he calls the “Judaizing” of Jerusalem, will present the perspective of the Jews towards the Temple Mount.

In March 2009, a similar conference hosted by the Truman Institute was blamed for Arab riots in East Jerusalem. Several of the speakers and participants at the conference openly called for preventing non-Muslims from visiting the Temple Mount. Israeli police closed the Temple Mount to non-Muslims as a preventative measure.

The Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace was established more than 20 years ago and was the first, and remains the largest, research institute in Israel and the Middle East to examine conflict resolution and propose peaceful solutions for the region.