Both have invested in an anti-Israel NGO called Emek Shaveh (equal valley) who works to deligitimize Biblical archaeology throughout Jerusalem. Emek Shaveh has called an emergency conference to stop the plan. The conference will feature left-wing architects.

The NGO claims that the route and construction of the cable cars will take place in sensitive locations in the capital. They also question the necessity and efficiency of the project. In their petition to the High Court, Emek Shaveh argue that the project should be shelved as it doesn’t meet the “criteria” of a transportation project, even though it was recently approved by the Government Housing Committee.

The stated purpose of the cable car initiative is to facilitate arrival to the Western Wall and the Old City, which is currently suffering from accessibility issues and transportation problems. The plan involves 73 cars with the capability of transporting up to 3,000 people an hour, on a 1.4 kilometer aerial route.

According to their site, Emek Shaveh claims to be “an organization of archaeologists and community activists focusing on the role of archaeology in Israeli society and in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

However at the same time they claim that: “archaeological findings should not function as a means to prove ownership by one people or one religion over a given tract of land. The archaeological finding is an integral part of local culture… The development of an archaeological site located within a built-up area cannot be justified if it ignores the local community.”

Watchdog group NGO Monitor notes that: “it promotes distorted facts and unsubstantiated positions that promote the Palestinian narrative of victimization and sole Israeli aggression.”

The reason that they fight against archaeology as a means of ownership is because they are heavily funded by the European Union and the New Israel Fund, who is backed by among other people, George Soros.