Hamas to Morocco: Muslim nations should stand with Al-Aqsa

Ismail Haniyeh, chief of the Political Bureau‎ of the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, has sent a letter to King Mohammed VI of Morocco concerning Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque.

In his letter, Haniyeh stated that the mosque has never witnessed such attacks since it was occupied 50 years ago, and that the Israeli occupation is more determined than ever to implement its plan to take full control of Al-Aqsa Mosque in order to impose a temporal and spatial divide between Muslims and Jews. The Israeli moves also seek to establish the Israeli government as the main reference point for the management of the mosque so as to curtail the historical role of the Islamic Awqaf (endowments) Department in occupied Jerusalem, the only authority responsible for the management of the mosque’s affairs.

Haniyeh added that the occupation authorities closed Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday 14 July. The mosque is still closed due to the intransigence of the occupation and its introduction of electronic gates at the entrances to the Al-Aqsa compound in order to tighten its grip and strengthen its control over movements into and out of the mosque. This is a blatant attack on the sanctity of the place that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) visited and which is the third holiest site after the two holy mosques (Makkah and Medina).

Read: Israel injures hundreds of worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque

In the letter, Haniyeh said that the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque is appealing to your consciences and magnanimity. It is not possible to keep silent about the Israeli occupation’s attempts to impose a new reality on Al-Aqsa Mosque, in which the occupation controls the mosque’s future.

The Palestinian leader stated that the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation have issued many resolutions in support of Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque, and that it is time to work to implement them in order to strengthen the resistance of the people in Jerusalem, who defend the nation’s holy places, according to Haniyeh.

“Our Arab and Islamic governments have a lot of diplomatic, legal, public and media cards. Today, Al-Aqsa urgently needs these cards to be used in order to pressure the occupation in all forums and events.”

The least that should be done is to support all the efforts to boycott, isolate, pursue and hold the occupation accountable for its crimes against the Palestinian people and their holy places.

Haniyeh said that the peoples of the Arab and Islamic nation have demonstrated that the love of Al-Aqsa Mosque is still running through their veins. Therefore, protests and campaigns were launched in more than one country. He added that the governments of the Arab and Islamic nation should use their people’s sympathy with Al-Aqsa to establish positions that are consistent with the demands of the Palestinian people and the Arab and Islamic peoples, which are to force the Israeli occupation to permanently remove its control over Al-Aqsa Mosque.

“Today we have a historic opportunity to force the occupation to end its attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque, and to stop its interference in its matters, through the coordination of official and public efforts that place pressure on the Israeli occupation.”

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He ended his correspondence by insisting that the Palestinian people, along with the people of the Arab and Islamic nations, reject any Israeli measures that undermine exclusive Islamic sovereignty over Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Palestinians are maintaining the most impressive resistance against Israeli domination and the terrorism of extremist settlers who are supported by the occupation government, he explained, while also maintaining hope and trust in the leaders of the Islamic nation, who have a significant influence in the battle of defending Al-Aqsa Mosque. He also insisted that history will remember their positions in support of Al-Aqsa and the resistance of the Palestinian people.

As chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, King Mohammed VI warned the United Nations that Israel’s illegal actions could lead to widespread anger and a broad-based popular reaction and provoke more tension and violence in the region as a whole. He called for action to be taken in order to force Israel to stop its practices of creating facts on the ground and taking full control over Jerusalem’s future.

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In a letter he sent to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday, the King of Morocco wrote that “these illegal actions violate the dignity of Jerusalemites, provoke the sentiments of all Palestinians and may lead to a huge wave of anger and a public reaction, further complicating the situation in the Palestinian territories.”

“These measures represent a clear provocation of the feelings of all Arabs, Muslims and free people around the world, and are a factor in inciting extremist tendencies that lead to further tension and violence in the whole region.”