Jewish "satanic plot": pre-Passover demonization by Abbas' advisor
- PA Chairman Abbas' Advisor Al-Habbash:
"I fear Israel… will destroy the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and build the alleged Israeli Temple in its place"
Defending Al-Aqsa Mosque is a "religious obligation" for "every Muslim"
"[Al-Habbash] demanded that the Arab and Islamic nations, peoples, and governments exert more efforts to support… those carrying out Ribat (i.e., religious conflict over land claimed to be Islamic), who are waging the battle to defend the Al-Aqsa Mosque"
As Jews in Israel and around the world prepare to celebrate the ancient Passover holiday commemorating the exodus from Egypt, a top Palestinian Authority official has been fanning flames of tension between Muslims and Jews by spreading the lie that Israel is planning to destroy Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount and rebuild the Jewish Temple in its place.
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' outspoken Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations Mahmoud Al-Habbash told the PA's official radio station just days ago that Israel was on the cusp of implementing this "satanic plot":
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations Mahmoud Al-Habbash: "Of course this is a baseless and worthless claim (i.e., the ongoing closure of major holy sites of all faiths due to the danger posed by Iranian missiles during the current war) being marketed by the occupation state (i.e., Israel) to justify this crime that it is committing against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. I fear that Israel will exploit this situation to impose a new reality and a new way of dealing with the Al-Aqsa Mosque that will lead to strengthening the Israeli control over the mosque, and as a result of this it will realize the well-known Israeli plot to seize part of the mosque and turn it into a Jewish synagogue, and also it will carry out the satanic plot that strives to destroy the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and build the alleged Israeli Temple in its place."
[The Voice of Palestine, official PA radio station, Facebook page,
March 25, 2026]
As Palestinian Media Watch has documented, Al-Habbash has fomented incitement over the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the past. Now, he's at it again - trying to use Al-Aqsa as a tool, not only to incite Palestinian Muslims, but once again, also Muslims everywhere against Jews and Israel:
"[PA] President [Mahmoud Abbas'] Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations and [PA] Supreme Shari'ah Judge of Palestine Mahmoud Al-Habbash condemned the fact that the Israeli occupation authorities closed the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to worshippers (i.e., closure of Temple Mount due to security concerns of rocket fire during Operation Roaring Lion; see note below -Ed.)… Al-Habbash rejected the justifications and arguments being disseminated by the occupation (i.e., Israel), whether under the pretext of war or the so-called Jewish religious events and holidays…
He also emphasized… that the management of the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque plaza is a private matter and an exclusive right of the Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem…
He further emphasized his opposition to the occupation's bullying and its attempts to strip the Islamic Waqf of its authority to manage and supervise the entire Jerusalem [Noble] Sanctuary (i.e., the Temple Mount), with all its plazas, tranquil areas of prayer, and walls, including the Al-Buraq Wall (i.e., the Western Wall of the Temple Mount) and all the facilities of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque…
Al-Habbash called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Arab League, and the wise people of the world to pressure Israel to stop its aggression against the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque before it is too late. He demanded that the Arab and Islamic nations, peoples, and governments exert more efforts to support the resolve of the residents of Jerusalem and those carrying out Ribat (i.e., religious conflict over land claimed to be Islamic) in the Jerusalem Sanctuary, who are waging the battle to defend the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and the dignity of the nation against the occupation's plots to destroy it and build the alleged Temple in its place."
[WAFA, official PA news agency, March 13, 2026]
Al-Habbash has been trying to recruit Indonesia – home to the world's largest Muslim population – to ignite Muslim outrage over this and other lies about Israeli intentions:
"[PA] President Mahmoud Abbas reemphasized [to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto] the seriousness of the closure of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre by the occupation (i.e., Israeli) authorities while using the war as an excuse (i.e., closure of Temple Mount due to security concerns of Iranian rocket fire during American-Israeli war against Iran 2026). The president said: The occupation authorities'plans to implement the Greater Israel project pose a danger to the region and the entire world, as they sabotage the entire political process and violate all the international institutions' resolutions and international law."
[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, March 24, 2026]
In fact, Al-Habbash apparently views the entire Muslim world as fertile ground for incitement over these fraudulent claims:
"Mahmoud Al-Habbashemphasized that the Palestinian cause is not the cause of one people or a specific state, but rather the cause of every Muslim…
Al-Habbash explained that Palestine is not just a political cause or a geographical conflict, but… the abode of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which makes its defense a religious… obligation."
[WAFA, official PA news agency, Jan. 23, 2026]
Al-Habbash is playing with fire. The blood-drenched second Intifada was also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, for the way incitement was used to drive the violence. About a decade ago, a similar wave of "Al-Aqsa is in danger"-themed incitement led to a spate of deadly stabbings and car rammings in what was termed the "Knife Intifada".