Arab and Islamic condemnation of Israeli escalation at the Al-Aqsa Mosque
The foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar strongly condemned the Israeli occupation’s escalation at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound / Al-Haram Al-Qudsi Al-Sharif.
In a joint statement issued on Thursday by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the ministers pointed to the continued mass incursions by settlers, led by extremist Israeli ministers, into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound / Al-Haram Al-Qudsi Al-Sharif under the protection of occupation police forces, the raising of the Israeli flag within its courtyards, the deployment of police tents, and other provocative acts.
The ministers affirmed that these escalatory and unacceptable actions constitute a blatant violation of international law, relevant United Nations resolutions, and the historical and legal status quo at the holy sites in occupied East Jerusalem.
They also expressed their strongest condemnation and rejection of the illegal and extremist acts committed by Israeli ministers and extremist groups, including incitement and calls to mobilize incursions and violence.
The ministers warned that these provocative acts fuel hatred and extremism and hinder efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace based on the two-state solution.
They stressed that restrictions on access to the Old City of Jerusalem and its places of worship, along with discriminatory and arbitrary restrictions on access to other places of worship in the Old City, constitute a blatant violation of international law, including international humanitarian law, as well as illegal attempts to alter the historical and legal status quo.
In this regard, they emphasized that the Israeli occupation has no sovereignty over occupied Jerusalem or its Islamic and Christian holy sites.
The foreign ministers condemned the ongoing systematic violations and measures implemented by the occupation aimed at changing the historical, legal, and demographic character of occupied East Jerusalem and undermining the sanctity and status of its Islamic and Christian holy sites.
They reiterated their firm rejection of any attempts to change the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and its Islamic and Christian holy sites, stressing the need to preserve it and reaffirming the special role of the Hashemite Custodianship in this regard.
The ministers also reaffirmed that the entire area of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound / Al-Haram Al-Qudsi Al-Sharif, covering 144 dunams, is exclusively a place of worship for Muslims, and that the Jerusalem Waqf Department and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs, under the Jordanian Ministry of Endowments, Islamic Affairs, and Holy Places, is the sole legal authority responsible for managing all affairs of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound / Al-Haram Al-Qudsi Al-Sharif and regulating access to it.
The ministers called on the Israeli occupation to immediately lift restrictions on access to the Old City of Jerusalem and to refrain from obstructing Muslim worshippers’ access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.
They also called on the international community to take a firm stance compelling the occupation to halt its continuous violations and illegal practices against the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, and to respect the sanctity of these holy sites.
