This Friday may go down in history as the "Black Friday" of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, because the clashes between Arabs and Jews in Jerusalem have been taken up a notch. Maybe even a few notches. It is no longer similar to the flare-up in July, when all eyes were on Operation Protective Edge after the murder of three Jewish teenagers and the revenge attack on a Palestinian boy. The writing has always been on the wall. For 94 years already. Most of the time it is invisible. This round's starting point was in the summer. Then came the writing, letter by letter. In red and black. The danger is that the writing will be completed on Friday, as the usual clashes unfold and worsen on the Temple Mount and spread throughout the united-divided city, and maybe even through the streets of Judea and Samaria. This development is unfortunate, as there are also many on the Arab-Palestinian side of the divide who are not interested in a flare-up. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas would lose out. As would Jordan. It was precisely for this reason that they chose to join Hamas' proverbial speeding bus toward conflict, because "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em." There is a known oversight in both sides' dealing with the issue of Jerusalem, whether separately from or in addition to the high-level dispute between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Abbas. There were many long months during which it could have been dealt with. Not what the final status of the Holy City in a diplomatic agreement will be, but what can be done to improve coexistence until then. Since the last elections, I have not understood why Jerusalem's Arabs rejected Mayor Nir Barkat's plan to rehabilitate the Silwan area, which would provide welfare for its residents, especially the Arab residents. I also did not understand why the authorities did not intervene to ensure the continuation of the spectacular archaeological excavations in the area while preventing the Elad group, during this sensitive time, from purchasing apartments from Arabs for Jews to live in. Apparently it is more comfortable, politically speaking, for leaders on both sides to simply let the situation deteriorate into a harsh conflict between stone throwers and police than work together to prevent the severe clashes this city has seen since the end of the Second Intifada. But it is still not too late. If anyone is concerned about the fate of life in Jerusalem, they must gather strength and courage to engage in dialogue with the other side and to stop the clashes planned for what could turn into Black Friday. It is too late to enlist Netanyahu's and Abbas' senior partners, if the PA president is even at all relevant and can make decisions on the matter -- courageous decisions that may fail. But there is a lower level, though still senior, including Israel Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino and Barkat. They know who their partners for dialogue are in the east of the city. Friday morning is the last opportunity to prevent the alternative -- violent clashes between stone throwers and terrorists and the police. A strong-armed police response is to the detriment of Israel, Jordan and Abbas, and only benefits terror, but, in the absence of even a momentary calm, the police have a duty to act with the full force of the law. It's too bad, but any other alternative is worse.
