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Y Daith: Ein Dinas Sanctaidd Ni

Y Daith

Y Daith: Ein Dinas Sanctaidd Ni

In this week's documentary we visit Jerusalem, a city regarded as sacred by three of the world's great religions, Islam, Judaism and Christianity.

We'll follow two people from Wales, a Muslim and a Jew, who are eager to visit the city for different reasons.

Retired restaurant manager Sirujal Islam wants to go to Jerusalem to fulfill the dream of his father, a poor person from Bangladesh, to go on a pilgrimage to one of the most holy places in the world according to Muslim tradition, the Al-Aqsa Mosque. "His faith was strong, and my faith is strong," he says.

Former journalist Mike Joseph wants to see if the vision of his Jewish grandfather, who lived in Germany, that people from several countries could live together in harmony in Jerusalem is now a reality. "I want to see if his dream is possible," says Mike, who last visited Jerusalem back in 1973 when he was a war correspondent during the Yom Kippur war. "Is it possible for people to live here in peace?" he asks.

During the programme we follow Sirujal as he visits the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and Mike's visit to the Wailing Wall, the most sacred place in the world, according to the Jews.

They both face disappointment as firstly Sirujal is refused admission to the Mosque on a Friday as he can't prove that he's a Muslim by reciting a chapter from the Koran. And Mike has a fiery confrontation with a young Zionist who hails from Cardiff near the Wailing Wall. Their argument leaves him shaken. "It reminds me about everything that's dreadful in the history of the world."

It's despair that the producer and director of the programme, Ali Yassine, also feels during the visit.

"The relationship between the different religions in Wales is so different to what you see in Jerusalem," says Ali who's a Muslim. "In Wales, we live in peaceful co-existence and respect each other. In Jerusalem, you can't hide the fact that the Arabs -Christians or Muslims - are being treated as second class citizens. There's no hope while people are being treated like this."

And says Mike, "There's no hope today or for the future."

© 2012 S4C
O Gymru / Made in Wales