Jerusalem – Ma’an – The blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque witnessed, on Tuesday, a wide-scale desecration and serious violations during settlers’ storming of it to commemorate the so-called “destruction of the temple,” which is considered the most important day “to renew the covenant to build the alleged temple and demolish the Dome of the Rock.”
The most notable event was not the number of intruders, which exceeded previous years and reached 2,250 extremists during the morning incursions, but rather the fact that a minister in the occupation government, ‘Minister of National Security,’ Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Minister of Negev and Galilee Affairs Yitzhak Wasserlauf led the incursions and participated in prayers inside Al-Aqsa, singing ‘The people of Israel live,’ group prayers, and prostration (‘epic prostration’) in several locations in Al-Aqsa, in addition to raising Israeli flags and chanting the ‘Israeli national anthem.’
Since the early hours of the morning, the occupation authorities have prevented worshipers from
entering Al-Aqsa Mosque, and this continues until now – due to the period of raids after the noon prayer – and dozens of worshipers explained to Ma’an Agency that they were prevented from entering Al-Aqsa, and the officers asked them to return after three o’clock in the afternoon to enter it. Among those prevented from entering are elderly people over 80 years old, and women of different ages.
As for inside Al-Aqsa, large and successive groups of settlers were storming it through the Mughrabi Gate – whose keys have been controlled by the occupation authorities since the occupation of Jerusalem – and a small number of worshipers, most of whom were elderly, were inside Al-Aqsa. The forces tried to determine their seating locations in the courtyards due to the absence of any on the settlers’ path, which begins from the Mughrabi Gate and its courtyard, then the courtyard of the Qibli Mosque, moving to the eastern area of ??Al-Aqsa, ‘and public group prayers are held’ as it is the main entrance to the alleged tem
ple, then moving to walk along the northern wall of Al-Aqsa, and then turning south towards the Qattanin Gate, then the chain – and those who exit Al-Aqsa – while looking at the dome, and prayers are usually held in public and collective voices in the place.
The forces pursued the worshipers while they were in the Old City, and forced them to leave it to prevent them from being at the gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Jerusalemite worshiper Nafisa Khweis said, ‘Arrests, pursuits, and beatings will not prevent us from defending and being at the closest point to Al-Aqsa. We sit where we are prevented. Al-Aqsa is our first Qiblah.’
The worshipper, Nizam Abu Ramouz, said: ‘Jerusalem has been turned into a military barracks to guard hundreds of settlers who want to storm Al-Aqsa and destroy the property of the people of Jerusalem, and we, the rightful owners, are being pursued and prevented from entering the mosque.’
The worshipper Abu Bakr Shimi said that he has been prevented from entering Al-Aqsa for 10 months, a
nd today he was also prevented from being present in the Old City. He added: ‘They have no temple here in Al-Aqsa, and we are determined to attend and worship.’
The violations did not stop at the storming of Al-Aqsa, as all the gates of the mosque “from the outside” witnessed collective prayers by settlers, under the protection of the occupation forces.
In the past hours, settlers have been attacking Jerusalemites with insults, beatings, and vandalizing shops.
‘We have made great progress in governance and sovereignty,’ National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said from inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque. ‘We have all seen Jews praying here freely, and as I said before, ‘Our policy is to allow Jews to pray.” He added in a speech from Al-Aqsa: ‘We must win this war, we must achieve victory and not go to meetings in Doha or Cairo. What is required is victory over them and their submission.’
In a statement by the Islamic authorities and authorities in Jerusalem, they condemned the escalating and unprecedented viol
ations committed by the occupation government against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif, as it recently began implementing plans by Jewish extremists to sabotage the status quo that has existed for more than 1,400 years in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Islamic authorities and authorities in Jerusalem warned of the consequences of the occupation authorities enabling hundreds of Jewish extremists, accompanied by ministers, politicians and Knesset members, to desecrate and storm the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque this morning, under the pretext of what they claim is the ‘anniversary of the destruction of the Temple,’ under heavy protection from police, border guards and armed special forces, and allowing the extremists to conduct provocative tours, set up dancing circles, clap and sing, raise the Israeli flag and other provocative violations of the feelings of two billion Muslims around the world.
The Islamic organizations also condemned the empowerment of hundreds of extremists to besiege Al-Aqsa Mosque and
shout and bang on the gates of the blessed Al-Aqsa on the night of August 12, 2024, as part of attempts to Judaize the surroundings of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and occupy the courtyards of its gates with provocative violations aimed at changing the Arab and Islamic identity of the holy city.
The religious bodies in Jerusalem denounced the international community’s failure to stop these violations.
The Jerusalemite bodies stressed that the violations of the occupation and extremism will not change the overwhelming divine truth that the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, with its area of ??144 dunams, is a purely Islamic mosque that will not accept division or partnership.
The religious bodies and authorities in Jerusalem called on all Muslims around the world to rally around the Hashemite guardianship to enable it to perform its duty to protect the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque as a pure mosque for Muslims alone.
Source: Maan News Agency