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Department of Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem labelled as ‘terrorist’ organisation

September 8, 2017 at 9:16 am

Sheikh Omar Qiswani, head of the Islamic Waqf (R) and worshippers perform prayers outside one of the main entrances to the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on 16 July 2017 [Mostafa Alkharouf / Anadolu Agency]

The Department of Islamic Waqf (Religious Endowment) in occupied Jerusalem has rejected the decision of the Israeli police to prosecute it as a “terrorist” organisation. The decision to close the Waqf office at Bab Al-Rahmah within the Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa has also been condemned.

“The Waqf Department is the sole official and religious party,” said an official statement from the organisation. “It is part of the Jordanian government and supervises the Islamic sanctities and their endowments, including the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Officials pointed out that successive Israeli governments have recognised this fact since the occupation of Jerusalem started in 1967 and accepted that the Jordanian Waqf has exclusive authority in managing, supervising and reconstructing these sanctities and their endowments, including Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Noble Sanctuary and all of its buildings and compound, which cover 35.5 acres over and below ground. All of this is under the patronage of King Abdullah II, a fact recognised by Israel and confirmed by the Jordan-Israel peace agreement in 1994.

Read: Israel targets Waqf land in Jerusalem

“Bab Al-Rahmah is an integral part of Al-Aqsa Mosque,” the department added. “There have been false claims that a committee known as the Heritage Committee, which is classified as a terrorist organisation, is operating from the offices in Bab Al-Rahmah.”

The statement affirmed the department’s rejection of the closure of Bab Al-Rahmah on an order of the police renewed annually since 2003 without any legal or legitimate grounds. “They have claimed that a terrorist organisation, known as the Heritage Committee, which does not exist, is operating in the area. Despite several demands to cancel this decision, the police refuse to do so.”