PA daily op-ed accuses Israel of carrying out “organized attacks against Muslims” in the Old City of Jerusalem
Op-ed by Hafez Al-Barghouti, regular columnist for Al-Hayat Al-Jadida
Headline: “The Satan in Jerusalem”
“I have learned from several sources that there are organized attacks against the Muslim and Abyssinian brothers in the Old City of Jerusalem, as they exit the Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is because some of those who interpret religion according to their whims and partisan interests undertake enlisting people they have mislead against the Christian brothers, and all this without mentioning the heavy military boot of the occupation and its settlers, who daily defile the Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is not about individual cases, but an action carried out by a group receiving payment, as the attack against the Jordanian guests in the Al-Aqsa Mosque was planned in advance, since it was announced in advance that Supreme Shariah Judge of Jordan Sheikh Ahmad Halil, and Jordanian Minister of Religious Affairs Hayel Daoud, would visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque for Friday prayers. Likewise, Arab and Muslim visitors have often been exposed to this type of harassment for partisan and political reasons, as if there are “Qaradawians” (i.e., those who share Egyptian Cleric Yusuf Qaradawi’s opinion against visiting Jerusalem, as it could lead to ’normalization’ with Israel) and their type, inciting to leave the Al-Aqsa Mosque without Muslim visitors. Why, for instance, was a Turkish minister well received? Is it because his relations with Hamas and the Liberation Party are good, as he intervened for the good of the Liberation Party in Gaza so it would mark the anniversary of the fall of the Ottoman caliphate there? Those who attack the Palestinian social fabric and the perpetual and tolerant co-existence between the religions are trying to drag us into the eye of the cursed storm that invades this area, destroys, demolishes, and kills, but does not take notice of the occupation.”
Headline: “The Satan in Jerusalem”
“I have learned from several sources that there are organized attacks against the Muslim and Abyssinian brothers in the Old City of Jerusalem, as they exit the Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is because some of those who interpret religion according to their whims and partisan interests undertake enlisting people they have mislead against the Christian brothers, and all this without mentioning the heavy military boot of the occupation and its settlers, who daily defile the Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is not about individual cases, but an action carried out by a group receiving payment, as the attack against the Jordanian guests in the Al-Aqsa Mosque was planned in advance, since it was announced in advance that Supreme Shariah Judge of Jordan Sheikh Ahmad Halil, and Jordanian Minister of Religious Affairs Hayel Daoud, would visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque for Friday prayers. Likewise, Arab and Muslim visitors have often been exposed to this type of harassment for partisan and political reasons, as if there are “Qaradawians” (i.e., those who share Egyptian Cleric Yusuf Qaradawi’s opinion against visiting Jerusalem, as it could lead to ’normalization’ with Israel) and their type, inciting to leave the Al-Aqsa Mosque without Muslim visitors. Why, for instance, was a Turkish minister well received? Is it because his relations with Hamas and the Liberation Party are good, as he intervened for the good of the Liberation Party in Gaza so it would mark the anniversary of the fall of the Ottoman caliphate there? Those who attack the Palestinian social fabric and the perpetual and tolerant co-existence between the religions are trying to drag us into the eye of the cursed storm that invades this area, destroys, demolishes, and kills, but does not take notice of the occupation.”