PA minister: Temple Mount is “completely Islamic,” is under “strongest attack history has known”
Headline: “Ida’is: More than 95 Israeli attacks and violations against the holy sites and places of worship during February”
“[PA] Minister of Religious Affairs Sheikh Yusuf Ida’is said that… the UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) resolution [of Oct. 13, 2016] regarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque is most important, particularly at this difficult stage in which the Al-Aqsa Mosque is subject to the strongest attack history has known. Therefore, [he said] it is necessary to implement the resolution on the ground immediately, and the Arabs and Muslims must have a practical plan for the defense of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. He explained that in February [2017] the mosque was subject to a strong attack of invasions, lies, and media statements that completely contradict reality. The latest of them was the occupied Jerusalem Magistrate Court ruling, which determined that the Al-Aqsa Mosque (i.e., the Temple Mount) is holy to Jews and they have a right to pray there, and that no one can prevent them from entering its plazas and going up to what is termed ‘the Temple Mount’ (for the actual ruling see note below –Ed.). This is alongside the claim of the occupation police’s Minister of Public Security [Gilad Erdan] that ‘the Temple Mount’ is the holiest site to the Jewish people, and only to the Jewish people (sic., Erdan did not specify that the site is holy only to the Jewish people -Ed).
Ida’is again emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque, with all of its plazas, is completely Islamic, and no decision of a court, whatever its name may be, or of any person, will change the irrefutable truth regarding the Islamicness of the site.”
The Jerusalem Magistrate Court on Feb. 26, 2017, convicted Sahar Natsheh, a 48-year-old Palestinian woman, for assaulting Israeli Parliament member Shuli Moalem-Refaeli at the Temple Mount over two years prior. Natsheh pushed Moalem-Refaeli and shouted at her to leave the Temple Mount, in an attempt to block her access.
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) passed a resolution in Paris on “Occupied Palestine” on Oct. 13, 2016, with 24 countries voting in favor, 6 against, and 24 abstentions. The resolution was later approved by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on Oct. 26, 2016, in a secret ballot in which ten countries voted in favor of the resolution, two opposed, eight abstained, and one country, Jamaica, was absent.
In the resolution UNESCO refers to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, only as “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif,” and presents it only as a “Muslim holy site.” The resolution condemns “escalating Israeli aggressions” and Israeli “violations” at the site, and calls on Israel “to respect the integrity, authenticity and cultural heritage of Al-Aqṣa Mosque/Al-Ḥaram Al-Sharif… as a Muslim holy site of worship.” The resolution likewise refers to the Western Wall Plaza as the “Al-Buraq Plaza ‘Western Wall Plaza,’” adding quotation marks to the Jewish name for the site.
The resolution was submitted by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan.
The countries voting for the resolution were: Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chad, China, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, and Vietnam.
Those voting against it were: Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, The Netherlands, the UK, and the US.
Mexico later noted for the record that its position on the issue is one of abstention, although the vote count was unaffected.
Full text here: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002462/246215e.pdf
The PA and its leaders consider all of the Temple Mount an integral part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Therefore they view any presence of Jews on the mount as an “invasion.” It should be noted that Jews who visit the Temple Mount only enter some sections of the open areas, and do not enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock.
“[PA] Minister of Religious Affairs Sheikh Yusuf Ida’is said that… the UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) resolution [of Oct. 13, 2016] regarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque is most important, particularly at this difficult stage in which the Al-Aqsa Mosque is subject to the strongest attack history has known. Therefore, [he said] it is necessary to implement the resolution on the ground immediately, and the Arabs and Muslims must have a practical plan for the defense of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. He explained that in February [2017] the mosque was subject to a strong attack of invasions, lies, and media statements that completely contradict reality. The latest of them was the occupied Jerusalem Magistrate Court ruling, which determined that the Al-Aqsa Mosque (i.e., the Temple Mount) is holy to Jews and they have a right to pray there, and that no one can prevent them from entering its plazas and going up to what is termed ‘the Temple Mount’ (for the actual ruling see note below –Ed.). This is alongside the claim of the occupation police’s Minister of Public Security [Gilad Erdan] that ‘the Temple Mount’ is the holiest site to the Jewish people, and only to the Jewish people (sic., Erdan did not specify that the site is holy only to the Jewish people -Ed).
Ida’is again emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque, with all of its plazas, is completely Islamic, and no decision of a court, whatever its name may be, or of any person, will change the irrefutable truth regarding the Islamicness of the site.”
The Jerusalem Magistrate Court on Feb. 26, 2017, convicted Sahar Natsheh, a 48-year-old Palestinian woman, for assaulting Israeli Parliament member Shuli Moalem-Refaeli at the Temple Mount over two years prior. Natsheh pushed Moalem-Refaeli and shouted at her to leave the Temple Mount, in an attempt to block her access.
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) passed a resolution in Paris on “Occupied Palestine” on Oct. 13, 2016, with 24 countries voting in favor, 6 against, and 24 abstentions. The resolution was later approved by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on Oct. 26, 2016, in a secret ballot in which ten countries voted in favor of the resolution, two opposed, eight abstained, and one country, Jamaica, was absent.
In the resolution UNESCO refers to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, only as “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif,” and presents it only as a “Muslim holy site.” The resolution condemns “escalating Israeli aggressions” and Israeli “violations” at the site, and calls on Israel “to respect the integrity, authenticity and cultural heritage of Al-Aqṣa Mosque/Al-Ḥaram Al-Sharif… as a Muslim holy site of worship.” The resolution likewise refers to the Western Wall Plaza as the “Al-Buraq Plaza ‘Western Wall Plaza,’” adding quotation marks to the Jewish name for the site.
The resolution was submitted by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan.
The countries voting for the resolution were: Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chad, China, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, and Vietnam.
Those voting against it were: Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, The Netherlands, the UK, and the US.
Mexico later noted for the record that its position on the issue is one of abstention, although the vote count was unaffected.
Full text here: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002462/246215e.pdf
The PA and its leaders consider all of the Temple Mount an integral part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Therefore they view any presence of Jews on the mount as an “invasion.” It should be noted that Jews who visit the Temple Mount only enter some sections of the open areas, and do not enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock.