Israel raids Al-Aqsa Sheikh’s house and imposes travel ban

Israeli intelligence agents raided the home of a veteran Imam of Al-Aqsa Mosque on Tuesday, Anadolu has reported. Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, 85, was handed a six-month travel ban at his home in occupied East Jerusalem, explained his legal representatives.

“This was done in the early morning hours, without prior warning or informing the legal office, and without taking into account the condition and health of the sheikh,” they pointed out. “His Eminence Sheikh Sabri was banned him from travelling for a period of six months, on the pretext that his travel constitutes a security threat to the occupation state.”

The travel ban appears to be an extension of a ban imposed on the Imam last month. At the time, a member of Sheikh Sabri’s family told Anadolu that, “The decision signed by Israeli Interior Minister Moshe Arbel claimed that the sheikh incites [against the occupation state] and that there are suspicions that he is using his foreign travels against Israel.” The anonymous relative denied the Israeli allegations in the wake of a tour by Sheikh Sabri that included Jordan, Algeria, Turkiye and Malaysia.

Sheikh Sabri has revealed repeatedly over many years that the Israeli authorities continue to harass worshippers in Al-Aqsa Mosque with deportation orders, arrests and travel bans. He has been arrested many times and investigated, as well as expelled from the Sacred Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.

READ: Israel bans Aqsa Mosque preacher from traveling