A number of archaeological excavations at the Temple Mount — a celebrated and contentious religious site in the Old City of Jerusalem — have taken place over the last 150 years. The first were undertaken by the British Royal Engineers in the 1870s.
Since Israel took over control of the Old City in 1967, archaeological excavations in the vicinity of the Mount have been undertaken by Israel and the Waqf. Both excavations have been controversial and criticized. Israeli excavations have also sparked demonstrations and objections in the Muslim world. Israeli and Jewish groups have criticized excavations conducted by the Waqf, the Muslim authority in charge of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Read more about Excavations At The Temple Mount: History, Post 1967, 2000s, Finds, See Also
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