Middle East Monitor / January 9, 2020
Since the start of the year, Israel has been implementing a plan to isolate and suffocate Al-Aqsa Mosque and change its status.
The Deputy Director of the Muslim Waqf (Religious Endowments) Department in occupied Jerusalem, Najeh Bkerat, said the occupation is increasing the frequency of its violations of Al-Aqsa Mosque, including the performance of Talmudic rituals within its compound, restricting the movement of Muslim worshippers, and thus imposing a new reality in the mosque.
According to Brekat, Israel has also threatened to close the Rahma Gate in an effort to increase its presence in the compound and get a foothold within its walls.
Finally, Israel seeks to impose its sovereignty on Al-Aqsa Mosque by interfering with the powers of the Islamic Waqf, including by preventing the Muslim body from carrying out any work inside the compound, in addition to hindering restoration and reconstruction activities.
Brekat pointed out that since the beginning of the year, the occupation has arrested more than 15 citizens in Jerusalem, and assaulted women and men in Al-Aqsa Mosque.
He stressed that the occupation is paving the way to convert Jerusalem to a Jewish capital by waging an ideological war against the Arab-Islamic narrative in the Holy City.
Brekat continued: “The Arab-Islamic silence and the conflicts and chaos taking place in the vicinity of Palestine served the occupation very significantly, and assisted it in its quest to monopolise Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem. Thus, the Israeli authorities remain immune and avoid accountability for their violations.”
“It is clear that the occupation seeks, day in and day out, to enter Al-Aqsa Mosque in order to change the equation significantly.”
