What is it with Geraldines?

In reference to Islamic State's destruction of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, "Pullitzer prize-winning author," Geraldine Brooks (who has toured "controversial digs" under occupied Arab East Jerusalem)* has been quoted as saying:

"When you see this determination to eradicate the records of any previous culture or way of thinking, it is such an arid and soul-destroying way of being. It is profoundly devastating. It is almost a weapon of morale against the people you are fighting, because these are the things that are fundamental to yourself and your culture. It would be like someone shelling the Sydney Opera House." (Battle to block the barbarians at the gates of a global cultural heritage, Peter Munro, Sydney Morning Herald, 3/12/16)

Or destroying the Haram ash-Sharif, eh Geraldine?:

"Liberating the Temple Mount from Arab (Islamic) occupation. The Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa mosque were placed on this Jewish or biblical holy site as a specific sign of Islamic conquest and domination. The Temple Mount can never be consecrated to the Name of G-d without removing these pagan shrines. It has been suggested that they be removed, transferred to, and rebuilt at Mecca." (Objectives of the Temple Mount Faithful,  templemountfaithful.org)

Nobody does euphemism quite like the Israelis. That last sentence is a classic of the genre.

[*See my 5/10/15 post The Tunnel Vision of Geraldine Brooks 1.]