16 aug 2019

The Hamas Movement has described Israeli security minister Gilad Erdan’s remarks on the Aqsa Mosque as a disregard for the Arab countries and their peoples and contempt for the feelings of the entire Muslim nation and the world’s free people.
Last Tuesday, Erdan told the Hebrew radio that the status quo at the Aqsa Mosque which he labeled as the temple mount must be changed so that Jews can prayer there.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasem said that Erdan’s remarks were part of Israel’s targeting of Jerusalem, which he called “a symbol of the Palestinian cause and one of its constants.”
Qasem affirmed that the Palestinian people would “really change the status quo in Jerusalem by expelling the Israeli occupation, extracting the freedom of the holy city and preserving its Arab Palestinian identity.”
“The reality of Jerusalem city and its future will be imposed by our people and their resistance, and the boundaries of the city will be drawn by the blood of the martyrs,” the spokesman said.
For its part, Jordan, the custodian of the Aqsa Mosque, has condemned Erdan’s remarks in which he called for changing the status quo at Jerusalem’s Aqsa Mosque compound.
Jordan’s foreign ministry has released a statement saying that the country rejects Erdan’s comments, warning that any change to the status quo will have “serious consequences.’
The foreign ministry reiterated that Israel, as an occupying power, must abide by its obligations under international and humanitarian law and fully respect Jerusalem's status quo.
The statement also said that Jordan has sent a formal letter of protest to Israel over Erdan’s remarks through diplomatic channels.
Turkey slams Erdan’s remarks over Aqsa status quo
Turkey’s foreign ministry on Thursday condemned the remarks made by Gilad Erdan, Israel’s public security minister, to change the historical status quo of the Aqsa Mosque.
"We utterly reject the statements of the Israeli minister of public security regarding changing the status quo at the Aqsa Mosque. This is an indication of a distorted mindset," the foreign ministry statement said.
"It is clear that any insinuation and step intended to prejudice the historical and legal status of Jerusalem will further exacerbate the tension in the region," the statement said.
The statement said that the Israeli authorities should be urged to put an end to their illegal practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, avoid irresponsible actions and statements that would increase tensions in the region.
Gilad Erdan told the Hebrew Radio on Tuesday that he thought there was an injustice in the status quo that has existed since 1967.
“We need to work to change [the status quo], so in the future Jews, with the help of God, can pray at the temple mount,” he added.
Israel occupied east Jerusalem, where Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. In 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city, claiming it as the self-proclaimed Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.
For Muslims, the Aqsa Mosque represents the world's third-holiest site after Mecca and Medina. Jews falsely refer to the area as the "temple mount," claiming it was the site of Jewish temples in ancient times.
Last Tuesday, Erdan told the Hebrew radio that the status quo at the Aqsa Mosque which he labeled as the temple mount must be changed so that Jews can prayer there.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasem said that Erdan’s remarks were part of Israel’s targeting of Jerusalem, which he called “a symbol of the Palestinian cause and one of its constants.”
Qasem affirmed that the Palestinian people would “really change the status quo in Jerusalem by expelling the Israeli occupation, extracting the freedom of the holy city and preserving its Arab Palestinian identity.”
“The reality of Jerusalem city and its future will be imposed by our people and their resistance, and the boundaries of the city will be drawn by the blood of the martyrs,” the spokesman said.
For its part, Jordan, the custodian of the Aqsa Mosque, has condemned Erdan’s remarks in which he called for changing the status quo at Jerusalem’s Aqsa Mosque compound.
Jordan’s foreign ministry has released a statement saying that the country rejects Erdan’s comments, warning that any change to the status quo will have “serious consequences.’
The foreign ministry reiterated that Israel, as an occupying power, must abide by its obligations under international and humanitarian law and fully respect Jerusalem's status quo.
The statement also said that Jordan has sent a formal letter of protest to Israel over Erdan’s remarks through diplomatic channels.
Turkey slams Erdan’s remarks over Aqsa status quo
Turkey’s foreign ministry on Thursday condemned the remarks made by Gilad Erdan, Israel’s public security minister, to change the historical status quo of the Aqsa Mosque.
"We utterly reject the statements of the Israeli minister of public security regarding changing the status quo at the Aqsa Mosque. This is an indication of a distorted mindset," the foreign ministry statement said.
"It is clear that any insinuation and step intended to prejudice the historical and legal status of Jerusalem will further exacerbate the tension in the region," the statement said.
The statement said that the Israeli authorities should be urged to put an end to their illegal practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, avoid irresponsible actions and statements that would increase tensions in the region.
Gilad Erdan told the Hebrew Radio on Tuesday that he thought there was an injustice in the status quo that has existed since 1967.
“We need to work to change [the status quo], so in the future Jews, with the help of God, can pray at the temple mount,” he added.
Israel occupied east Jerusalem, where Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. In 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city, claiming it as the self-proclaimed Jewish state’s “eternal and undivided” capital.
For Muslims, the Aqsa Mosque represents the world's third-holiest site after Mecca and Medina. Jews falsely refer to the area as the "temple mount," claiming it was the site of Jewish temples in ancient times.
15 aug 2019

Scores of Jewish settlers broke into the Aqsa Mosque in Occupied Jerusalem on Thursday led by the Israeli minister of agriculture Uri Ariel.
Sources in the holy Islamic site said that the Jewish settlers defiled the Aqsa Mosque in droves and were protected by Israeli special forces.
They pointed out that Ariel was heading a group of those settlers and toured its courtyards.
Sources in the holy Islamic site said that the Jewish settlers defiled the Aqsa Mosque in droves and were protected by Israeli special forces.
They pointed out that Ariel was heading a group of those settlers and toured its courtyards.
14 aug 2019

The presidency warned Israel today against attempts to change the existing status quo in Al-Aqsa Mosque, condemning in particular statements by the Israeli Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan in which he called for changing the historical status quo at the Muslim holy site by allowing Jews to worship there as well.
"We condemn these statements aimed at increasing tension and fueling the feelings of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Islamic nations," said the presidency in a statement, stressing that "Al-Aqsa Mosque is a red line and will not be touched in any way."
The statement held the Israeli government responsible for the provocations and attacks by Jewish fanatics on religious places in occupied Jerusalem, especially against the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
It called on the international community to intervene to pressure Israel to stop these provocations, which if continued will lead to a situation that will not be controlled and has very serious consequences.
The presidency asserted that the Palestinian leadership, headed by President Mahmoud Abbas, is in coordination and continuous contact with the various concerned parties to bring a halt to the attacks against Al-Aqsa Mosque by Jewish extremists under the protection of the Israeli government.
"We condemn these statements aimed at increasing tension and fueling the feelings of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Islamic nations," said the presidency in a statement, stressing that "Al-Aqsa Mosque is a red line and will not be touched in any way."
The statement held the Israeli government responsible for the provocations and attacks by Jewish fanatics on religious places in occupied Jerusalem, especially against the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
It called on the international community to intervene to pressure Israel to stop these provocations, which if continued will lead to a situation that will not be controlled and has very serious consequences.
The presidency asserted that the Palestinian leadership, headed by President Mahmoud Abbas, is in coordination and continuous contact with the various concerned parties to bring a halt to the attacks against Al-Aqsa Mosque by Jewish extremists under the protection of the Israeli government.
13 aug 2019
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Several armed illegal Israeli colonialist settlers, accompanied by soldiers, invaded the al-Mas’udiyya area, on Palestinian lands in Burqa village, northwest of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, and conducted training.
Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official who monitors Israel’s illegal colonialist activities in northern West Bank, said the colonists were armed with assault rifles, and conducted training in the archeological site. He added that the soldiers closed the area and surrounded it, before allowing the colonist in, and prevented the Palestinians from entering. Daghlas stated that the colonists were mainly women and children, and almost all of them were armed. Al-Mas’udiyya area is a destination for internal Palestinian tourism and is known for once having the railway station during the Ottoman era. |
When the railway lines were functional during the Ottoman era, they linked the area with Haifa, and all the way to Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

Kuwaiti Speaker of the National Assembly Marzouq al-Ghanim has called for a Arab, Islamic and international action to put real pressure on the Israeli occupation state after its police forces attacked Muslim worshipers at the Aqsa Mosque and allowed Jewish settlers to defile it on the first day of Eid al-Adha.
In recent press remarks, Ghanim said the Israeli police’s brutal attacks on Muslim worshipers at the Aqsa Mosque on the morning of Eid al-Adha vindicated further that all peace calls and plans were fake and that the occupation entity only knows the language of force.
“It is shameful to leave the Jerusalemites, and the Palestinians in general confront the enemy alone with no support,” the Kuwait official underlined.
In recent press remarks, Ghanim said the Israeli police’s brutal attacks on Muslim worshipers at the Aqsa Mosque on the morning of Eid al-Adha vindicated further that all peace calls and plans were fake and that the occupation entity only knows the language of force.
“It is shameful to leave the Jerusalemites, and the Palestinians in general confront the enemy alone with no support,” the Kuwait official underlined.
12 aug 2019
|
Israeli police injured dozens of Palestinians praying at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Sunday, the first day of Eid al-Adha or Feast of the Sacrifice.
The Muslim holiday this year coincides with the Jewish holiday of Tisha B’Av, which in Jewish belief commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. The Islamic Waqf – the body responsible for Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem – announced on Friday that only the al-Aqsa mosque would open its doors for prayers in Jerusalem on the first day of the holiday. Israel initially closed the al-Aqsa mosque compound, which Jews call the |
Temple Mount and Muslims call al-Haram al-Sharif, for Jewish worshippers on Sunday, as is the norm, to avoid clashes with Muslim worshippers.
Israel regularly imposes tight closures on all Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip for days during Jewish holidays.
Israel then reversed its decision, allowing more than 1,700 Jewish Israelis to enter the compound under the protection of occupation forces: tweet, video tweets
Israel fired tear gas canisters, stun grenades and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian worshippers in the compound.
This video shows Israeli forces firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians: Local media circulated pictures and videos showing Israeli forces attacking Palestinian worshippers: This video shows Palestinians, including children, running from Israeli forces:
Fifteen Palestinians were hospitalized and seven arrested.
Gradual takeover
Jewish religious authorities backed the ban on Jewish worshippers from entering the compound during the Tisha B’Av holiday out of religious principles.
“Jews are strictly prohibited from entering Temple Mount according to Jewish law, and it would be best if they avoid from entering the complex all year long,” Yitzhak Yosef, one of Israel’s two chief rabbis, stated.
This reflects the longstanding position of Israel’s official rabbinate.
But Jewish nationalist groups with close links to the government defy this position.
Activists from the so-called Temple movement encourage Jews to go to al-Aqsa, using such incursions as steps toward a gradual takeover of the site by settlers.
“It seems the Arabs are going to win over the battle to open Temple Mount to Jews on Tisha B’Av,” an activist with the movement told Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“When hundreds of thousands of Jews arrive at Temple Mount, no one will be able to prevent the building of the Temple,” another said.
The ultimate aim of the movement – openly declared by many of its adherents – is the destruction of the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock and their replacement with a Jewish temple.
However, Temple movement activists often obscure this goal and claim they merely want more access for Jews to pray at the site, framing the matter as an issue of equality and civil rights.
But as The Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah told Al Jazeera English on Sunday, “you can’t have civil rights under military occupation when Palestinians have no civil rights, no human rights.”
“The thing I would ask [Likud lawmaker] Yehuda Glick, which I don’t see too many journalists doing, why have you and your Temple movement published blueprints for this Jewish temple, which will be built on the ruins of al-Aqsa mosque?” Abunimah added.
Glick is a leader of the Israeli-government backed Temple movement.
United States envoy Jason Greenblatt tweeted in support of Israeli settlers.
“Don’t let anyone claim Israel is ‘judaizing’ the City of Jerusalem,” Greenblatt stated. tweet
Israel’s strategic affairs minister Gilad Erdan celebrated the decision to allow Jewish Israelis into the compound to “strengthen Israeli sovereignty on the mount.”
Such comments expose how Israel’s real agenda is to use Jewish worship at the site as a cover and alibi for its illegal annexation of occupied East Jerusalem.
Condemnations
Jordan – the custodian of holy sites in Jerusalem – condemned Israeli violence against Palestinian worshippers.
Foreign minister Ayman Safadi said that “attempts by the occupying authorities will not change the status quo of occupied Jerusalem.”
Safadi warned that Israel’s violations of the holy site could lead to an “explosion” in the already volatile situation.
Jordan called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt its provocations.
The Palestinian Authority also called for international action.
Settler organization strengthens hold
Meanwhile, the Greek Orthodox Church filed a lawsuit with an Israeli court last week seeking to overturn leases of Jerusalem properties to a settler organization.
The 99-year leases are for three prime properties near Jaffa Gate. They were given to Ateret Cohanim, a right-wing organization involved in Israeli settlement on Palestinian land in Jerusalem.
In June, the Israeli high court ruled in favor of the settler organization, giving the greenlight for it to take over the properties.
The church claims to have new evidence of corruption including bribes between the settler group and church officials involved in the leases, Haaretz reported.
Previously, Ateret Cohanim claimed to have bought the church land in 2004 from Ireneus I, the Greek Orthodox patriarch at the time.
The Greek Orthodox Church has subsequently taken over the site but Ateret Cohanim is now trying to seize the land that it says it bought over a decade ago.
Ireneus I claims his ousting was not legal and still identifies as the patriarch.
Theophilos III, the current patriarch, has rejected the sale that his predecessor approved, saying it involved corruption.
Israel regularly imposes tight closures on all Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip for days during Jewish holidays.
Israel then reversed its decision, allowing more than 1,700 Jewish Israelis to enter the compound under the protection of occupation forces: tweet, video tweets
Israel fired tear gas canisters, stun grenades and rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinian worshippers in the compound.
This video shows Israeli forces firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians: Local media circulated pictures and videos showing Israeli forces attacking Palestinian worshippers: This video shows Palestinians, including children, running from Israeli forces:
Fifteen Palestinians were hospitalized and seven arrested.
Gradual takeover
Jewish religious authorities backed the ban on Jewish worshippers from entering the compound during the Tisha B’Av holiday out of religious principles.
“Jews are strictly prohibited from entering Temple Mount according to Jewish law, and it would be best if they avoid from entering the complex all year long,” Yitzhak Yosef, one of Israel’s two chief rabbis, stated.
This reflects the longstanding position of Israel’s official rabbinate.
But Jewish nationalist groups with close links to the government defy this position.
Activists from the so-called Temple movement encourage Jews to go to al-Aqsa, using such incursions as steps toward a gradual takeover of the site by settlers.
“It seems the Arabs are going to win over the battle to open Temple Mount to Jews on Tisha B’Av,” an activist with the movement told Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“When hundreds of thousands of Jews arrive at Temple Mount, no one will be able to prevent the building of the Temple,” another said.
The ultimate aim of the movement – openly declared by many of its adherents – is the destruction of the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock and their replacement with a Jewish temple.
However, Temple movement activists often obscure this goal and claim they merely want more access for Jews to pray at the site, framing the matter as an issue of equality and civil rights.
But as The Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah told Al Jazeera English on Sunday, “you can’t have civil rights under military occupation when Palestinians have no civil rights, no human rights.”
“The thing I would ask [Likud lawmaker] Yehuda Glick, which I don’t see too many journalists doing, why have you and your Temple movement published blueprints for this Jewish temple, which will be built on the ruins of al-Aqsa mosque?” Abunimah added.
Glick is a leader of the Israeli-government backed Temple movement.
United States envoy Jason Greenblatt tweeted in support of Israeli settlers.
“Don’t let anyone claim Israel is ‘judaizing’ the City of Jerusalem,” Greenblatt stated. tweet
Israel’s strategic affairs minister Gilad Erdan celebrated the decision to allow Jewish Israelis into the compound to “strengthen Israeli sovereignty on the mount.”
Such comments expose how Israel’s real agenda is to use Jewish worship at the site as a cover and alibi for its illegal annexation of occupied East Jerusalem.
Condemnations
Jordan – the custodian of holy sites in Jerusalem – condemned Israeli violence against Palestinian worshippers.
Foreign minister Ayman Safadi said that “attempts by the occupying authorities will not change the status quo of occupied Jerusalem.”
Safadi warned that Israel’s violations of the holy site could lead to an “explosion” in the already volatile situation.
Jordan called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt its provocations.
The Palestinian Authority also called for international action.
Settler organization strengthens hold
Meanwhile, the Greek Orthodox Church filed a lawsuit with an Israeli court last week seeking to overturn leases of Jerusalem properties to a settler organization.
The 99-year leases are for three prime properties near Jaffa Gate. They were given to Ateret Cohanim, a right-wing organization involved in Israeli settlement on Palestinian land in Jerusalem.
In June, the Israeli high court ruled in favor of the settler organization, giving the greenlight for it to take over the properties.
The church claims to have new evidence of corruption including bribes between the settler group and church officials involved in the leases, Haaretz reported.
Previously, Ateret Cohanim claimed to have bought the church land in 2004 from Ireneus I, the Greek Orthodox patriarch at the time.
The Greek Orthodox Church has subsequently taken over the site but Ateret Cohanim is now trying to seize the land that it says it bought over a decade ago.
Ireneus I claims his ousting was not legal and still identifies as the patriarch.
Theophilos III, the current patriarch, has rejected the sale that his predecessor approved, saying it involved corruption.

The Arab League has strongly denounced the Israeli aggressive practices at the Aqsa Mosque following the Eid al-Adha prayers on Sunday in Occupied Jerusalem.
In a statement, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that the events that happened at the Aqsa Mosque at the behest of the Israeli government reflected “a systematic Israeli policy aimed at normalizing the Jewish presence in al-Haram al-Sharif and reducing the Muslim presence there, even on the holy days when Eid prayers are performed.”
Aboul Geit held the Israeli government responsible for its serious escalation of the situation at the Aqsa Mosque in order to please extremist Jewish groups, warning that Israel’s reckless and barbaric policies would fuel the flames of fanaticism in the region and threaten to ignite a religious strife in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
He appealed to the international community to stand in the face of the Israeli Judaization campaign taking place in Jerusalem under political cover from the US administration.
In a statement, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that the events that happened at the Aqsa Mosque at the behest of the Israeli government reflected “a systematic Israeli policy aimed at normalizing the Jewish presence in al-Haram al-Sharif and reducing the Muslim presence there, even on the holy days when Eid prayers are performed.”
Aboul Geit held the Israeli government responsible for its serious escalation of the situation at the Aqsa Mosque in order to please extremist Jewish groups, warning that Israel’s reckless and barbaric policies would fuel the flames of fanaticism in the region and threaten to ignite a religious strife in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
He appealed to the international community to stand in the face of the Israeli Judaization campaign taking place in Jerusalem under political cover from the US administration.
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