Palestinians angered at Israeli mayor

The Israeli mayor’s visit to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East al-Quds (Jerusalem) has sparked anger among Palestinians and Islamic authorities.

Nir Barkat, the Israeli mayor of East al-Quds, paid a visit to the al-Aqsa compound on Tuesday while he was escorted by the regime’s police forces.

The al-Aqsa Foundation has harshly lashed out at Barkat’s move, describing it as the “storming” of the compound by the Israeli official.

“This does not give any legitimacy to considering al-Aqsa part of the jurisdiction of the Jerusalem municipality, and does not erase the eternal Islamic character of the mosque,” read the statement issued by the al-Aqsa Foundation.

Similarly, the Islamic Waqf, which is in charge of the compound, has denounced Barkat’s visit, calling it “political”.

Barkat’s Tuesday tour came shortly after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas urged the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on Israeli aggression in East al-Quds and attacks on the al-Aqsa Mosque.

The al-Aqsa Mosque has been the scene of clashes between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli settlers and troops in the past few weeks. Tel Aviv has imposed fresh restrictions on the access of Palestinians to the holy site.

Palestinians are extremely angry at Tel Aviv’s raids and restrictions, considering them as parts of Israel’s plan to judaize and desecrate the holy Islamic site. Palestinians argue that al-Quds is the capital of a future Palestinian independent state, and that its heritage should remain intact.

Over the past decades, Israel has tried to change the demographic makeup of al-Quds by constructing illegal settlements, destroying historical sites and expelling the local Palestinian population.

The al-Aqsa compound, which lies in the Israeli-occupied Old City of al-Quds, is a flashpoint. The location of the compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, is the holiest site in Judaism. The mosque is Islam’s third-holiest site after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

FNR/MHB/AS