Palestinian leaders call for violence to stop Israel’s “satanic designs” on the Temple Mount
Official PA TV
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Advisor Ahmed Al-Ruweidi: “The occupation forces need to withdraw. They need to understand that they are trespassing on a Muslim holy site. They need to understand that they are attacking the people; women, men, young people, girls – everyone is at the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is our message through you to everyone: To those who have the ability to intervene, let them stand today with their responsibility and speak out in a loud voice to stop the crime against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, which we know that the occupation is plotting against, andits goal is to put its hands on it and divide it in preparation for establishing the alleged Temple that it is talking about.”
Fatah Revolutionary Council Secretary-General Majed Al-Fatiani: “To the Palestinian Interior (i.e., Palestinian term for Israel, refers to Israeli Arabs) we say: All of us in the Fatah Movement have told all our staff in all our places for days – go out! Into our streets, into our alleys, so that the cost of this occupation will be expensive for this enemy (refers to violent Arab riots; see note below -Ed.)…
There are crazy settlers in the alleys, streets, neighborhoods, and villages of the Northern Districts (i.e., the West Bank). Why are we not standing against them? We said: ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, and the one who started it is the guilty party.’”
Secretary-General of the PLO Islamic-Christian Council for Jerusalem and the Holy Sites Hanna Issa: “Israel is now planning satanic designs to establish ‘Solomon’s Temple’ in place of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and it is carrying this out in three steps: First, erasing the Arab, Christian, and Muslim identity in the holy city [of Jerusalem]. Secondly, focusing on imposing a Jewish character [on the city]. Thirdly, establishing Greater Jerusalem on a territory of 600 square meters. This idea was approved by the Israeli government in 1975 and Israel recognizes it. Now, take the excavations that are being carried out in Jerusalem – 104 excavations in Jerusalem.”
Jerusalem District Deputy Governor Abdallah Siyam: “We hope that [the Arab states that normalized ties with Israel] (see note below -Ed.) will reexamine their positions and their approach towards Jerusalem through decisions that confirm our right to Jerusalem, and that the occupier is the occupier and the victim is this Jerusalem people that is confronting [Israel] withits bare body and with a rock in its hand…
The encirclement by the settlements, the encirclement by the [separation] fence, the encirclement by the settler outposts and this military assembling – they are all working so that no one will reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque. But despite this, we seethisheroicscenethatisfullofdetermination,faith,andpersistenceinordertodefendthesanctityofthissiteagainstthedesecrationthatwasplannedforit.Theplanwas-Theoccupation’sbiggestrabbisannouncedthattheywouldleadthesemarches(referstoJerusalemDayIsraeliflagmarches-Ed.).TheycompetedwhowouldleadthemintheAl-AqsaMosquecourtyards,butthesewounds, this suffering, these arms, and these rocks thwarted this plan that they wanted today [May 10, 2021] to turn the Al-Aqsa Mosque plazas into [a place for] parading their [Israeli] flags, a march of their herds, a march of their extremists at the expense of our prayers, our calm, and our divine worship.”
[Official PA TV, May 10, 2021]
Hanna Issa also serves as Fatah Revolutionary Council member.
Fatah/Hamas Riot and Rocket War 2021 – On April 30, 2021, facing certain electoral defeat, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas cancelled the first PA elections scheduled in 15 years. Hamas, which expected to win the elections, denounced it as a “coup.” In need of a conflict to divert public discontent, Abbas artificially generated a crisis over Jerusalem. His Fatah party called for "raising the level of confrontation,” and Abbas' spokesman told Palestinians "the battle of all battles is here.” Jerusalem Arabs responded by attacking Jews with rocks and Molotov cocktails. Hamas, Abbas' political rival, could not allow Abbas to lead the battle, so on May 10, 2021, Hamas launched rocket barrages targeting Israeli population centers including Jerusalem. Over the next 11 days, Hamas and Islamic Jihad fired over 4,300 rockets into southern and central Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing 9 Israelis and 3 foreign nationals, and wounding hundreds. In response, Israel launched Operation Guardian of the Walls to target Hamas terror leaders and terror infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. Already in mid-April, a planned eviction of some Palestinian families illegally living in Jewish-owned buildings in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem had led to clashes between Palestinian residents and Israeli police. This dispute provided Palestinians with a pretext for violent rioting. Adding to the crisis, Israeli Arabs started rioting throughout Israel, especially in cities with a mixed Jewish and Arab population. Two Jews were murdered and many were wounded. According to Walla, an independent Israeli news site, 10 synagogues were wholly or partly burned down; fires were set in 112 Jewish homes and 1 Arab home mistaken for a Jewish home; 386 Jewish homes were plundered and 673 were damaged; 849 cars were set ablaze; and there were 5,018 rock-throwing attacks. In response, Jews started attacking Arabs and their properties as well, but on a much smaller scale. No mosques were burned; 13 Arab homes were damaged; 13 Arab-owned cars were burned; and there were 41 rock-throwing attacks by Jews. [Walla, May 16, 2021] The fighting between Israel and Hamas ended with a ceasefire on May 21, 2021.
Israeli peace agreements with the UAE and Bahrain (the Abraham Accords), Sudan, and Morocco – an agreement normalizing diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was announced on Aug. 13, 2020, under the mediation of US President Donald Trump. Following the UAE, Bahrain reached a similar peace agreement with Israel, as was announced on Sept. 11, 2020. The agreements were signed at the White House on Sept. 15, 2020, by Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Bahraini Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani. Pursuant to the Abraham Accords, Israel and the UAE will discuss bilateral cooperation on a number of topics. In exchange for the agreement, Israel agreed to suspend its previously announced plans to apply Israel's civilian law to parts of Judea, Samaria, and the Jordan Valley as per the Trump peace plan. The US announced that “Muslims throughout the world who wish to come in peace to pray at the Al Aqsa Mosque, will now be able to fly to Tel Aviv through Abu Dhabi to do so and will be welcomed.” On Oct. 23, 2020, Sudan also formally agreed to normalize relations with Israel. Israel reached a similar normalization agreement with Morocco on Dec. 10, 2020.