OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)
Hassan Khater, head of the Jerusalem International Center, has warned of an Israeli court decision to allow between 100 and 600 Jewish settlers, including rabbis, to tour the closed Aqsa Mosque’s courtyards daily.
In a statement on Monday, Khater called this Israeli step a serious escalation targeting the status quo at the Aqsa Mosque.
Khater said that the Israeli higher court effectively authorized on Sunday the organization of settler tours at the Aqsa Mosque.
“The Aqsa Mosque has evolved beyond a purely religious matter into one with overt political implications,” Khater added. “How can settlers be allowed to storm it in such numbers, while Muslims face entry restrictions?”
He argued that Israel’s closure of the Aqsa Mosque to Muslim worshippers is not, as claimed by its police, a matter of security or safety, but rather part of broader efforts to impose Jewish control over the Islamic holy site.
Khater warned that this decision would inflame tensions in the holy city, calling for decisive Arab and Islamic action to stop the escalating Israeli violations against the Aqsa Mosque and safeguard its religious and historical identity.
In a related incident, Israeli security minister Itamar Ben Gvir and several police officers defiled the Aqsa Mosque’s courtyards and the al-Maghariba Gate area on Monday.
