The Jerusalem Province has warned of the dangers of exploiting Jewish holidays to impose new facts on the ground and storm the Al-Aqsa Mosque, amid escalating Israeli occupation and settler violations in the city. This comes during the third day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The province said in a statement that Israeli occupation forces closed the Wadi Al-Rababa intersection in the town of Silwan, causing severe traffic congestion in the surrounding streets.
The closure of the intersection coincided with students heading to school, and the forces also closed Bab Al-Asbat Street towards Bab Al-Rahma and Bab Al-Magharba. This move is expected to extend to other roads leading to the Western Wall, with the aim of securing the movement of settlers participating in collective religious rituals. The province emphasized that these measures do not represent mere temporary security arrangements, but rather a collective punishment for Jerusalemites and a systematic restriction on their movement.
The province stressed that the protection of settlers during their raids on Al-Aqsa Mosque cannot be separated from the Israeli occupation's procedures that accompany them in the Old City, Silwan, and the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque. These procedures include closing streets, tightening military measures, and disrupting the movement of citizens, effectively turning Jerusalem into a city managed according to the needs of settlers and their rituals.
The Jerusalem Province warned that Al-Aqsa Mosque is not an open arena for Israeli occupation and settler experiments, nor a place to recreate alleged historical rituals at the expense of the mosque's Islamic identity. The province cautioned that continued practices threaten to explode the situation in Jerusalem and the entire region. It called on the international community, Arab and Islamic countries, and relevant international institutions to assume their legal, political, and moral responsibilities.
The province urged the international community to move immediately to stop raids and provocative rituals inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and pressure the Israeli occupation government to halt measures targeting freedom of worship and the existing historical and legal status of the mosque. It also called for documenting all violations witnessed in Jerusalem during Jewish holidays, including raids, prayers, and rituals, as well as closures and restrictions on Jerusalemites' movement.
The Jerusalem Province emphasized that Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque will remain a symbol of Palestinian national and religious identity. It stressed that Israeli occupation measures and settler practices, no matter how escalated, do not grant the occupation legitimacy over Al-Aqsa Mosque nor change its religious and legal status. The province vowed to continue monitoring and reporting on Israeli violations in Jerusalem.
The province's statement concluded by affirming that it will continue to work to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem from Israeli occupation and settler aggression. It called on the international community to take concrete steps to support the Palestinian people and protect their rights in Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Key points
- The Jerusalem Province warned of the dangers of exploiting Jewish holidays to impose new facts on the ground and storm Al-Aqsa Mosque.
- The province called on the international community to assume their legal, political, and moral responsibilities and move immediately to stop raids and provocative rituals inside Al-Aqsa Mosque.
- The province emphasized that Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque will remain a symbol of Palestinian national and religious identity.
