[News] Israeli excavations and blocking of restoration eat away at the fabric of Al-Aqsa Mosque

[Anti-Imperialist News]

middleeastmonitor.com
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230223-israeli-excavations-and-blocking-of-restoration-eat-away-at-the-fabric-of-al-aqsa-mosque/>
Israeli excavations and blocking of restoration eat away at the fabric of
Al-Aqsa Mosque
February 23, 2023
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[image: image.png]

The Israeli occupation authorities are continuing their criminal, racist
policies against Jerusalem and the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and attempting
to implement the Talmudic plans to fulfil the dream of extremist Jewish
settlers to demolish the mosque and build a temple on its ruins, the
*Palestinian
Information Centre* has revealed. Every possible crime is committed with
this objective in mind, including excavations under Al-Aqsa Mosque and its
courtyards to undermine the foundations, said the news outlet, as well as
in the surrounding neighbourhoods to change the demography. Moreover, the
Islamic Religious Endowments Department is prevented from carrying out
essential restoration work on the fabric of the ancient structures in the
Noble Sanctuary.

Recent heavy rain has exposed serious cracks in the sanctuary's buildings,
facilities, walls, ceilings and floors; rainwater has leaked into the
Marwani Mosque and soaked the carpets. Paving stones on Via Dolorosa near
Al-Ghanamwa Gate have collapsed and stones on the Western side of the Dome
of the Rock have fallen.

*READ: Israel launches air strikes on Gaza
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230223-israel-launches-air-strikes-on-gaza/>*

Israeli excavations have also recently caused the collapse of retaining
walls and floors in houses in Jerusalem's neighbourhoods. In Silwan, part
of the house of Jerusalem resident Kayed Al-Rajabi collapsed in the Batn
Al-Hawa area, and a retaining wall collapsed in Ain Al-Lawza neighbourhood.
There is a real danger of homes belonging to Palestinian Jerusalemites
collapsing, and this threat has increased after the occupation forces
demolished a retaining wall belonging to the Abu Tayeh family a few days
ago.

[image: Israeli occupation forces look set to increase their policy of
bulldozing Palestinian land and property in 2023 - Cartoon [Sabaaneh/Middle
East Monitor]]

Israeli occupation forces look set to increase their policy of bulldozing
Palestinian land and property in 2023 – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/Middle East
Monitor]

The Elad illegal settlers' association revealed earlier that it had
concluded its excavations in Jabal Mukaber and Silwan, and that it had
obtained the approval of the occupation-controlled municipality in
Jerusalem to start building a huge tourist centre at the top of Jabal
Mukaber. Settlers' groups are working to link illegal settlements between
Silwan and Jabal Mukaber, blocking any expansion of Palestinian residential
areas.

"The [Israeli] occupation is deliberately preventing the restoration in
conjunction with the continuation of its excavations under Al-Aqsa and its
surroundings, in order to have an impact on the buildings of the mosque and
expose them to collapse," Muhammad Hamada, the spokesman on Jerusalem
issues for Hamas, told the *Palestinian Information Centre*. He also
referred to the Talmudic plans to demolish the mosque and build a temple in
its place.

Hamada explained that the rain damage is an example of the deliberate
Zionist policy and "crimes" against Al-Aqsa Mosque. Alarm bells should be
ringing every time there is any bad weather, he insisted. "What are we
waiting for in order to protect the mosque and prevent a catastrophe after
which regret will not be of any use?" He stressed the need for action at
all levels to force the Israeli occupation authorities to allow restoration
and repair work and the entry of the necessary equipment to carry this out.
"All gaps and holes need to be closed as a matter of urgency. Stonework
needs to be strengthened, including the walls. Proper, regular maintenance
should start without delay."

*READ: IOA accelerates underground digging around Al-Aqsa Mosque
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230113-ioa-accelerates-underground-digging-around-al-aqsa-mosque/?relatedposts_hit=1&relatedposts_origin=617071&relatedposts_position=1>*

The Hamas spokesman said that the Zionist occupation is fully responsible
for what is happening to the Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa, as it has
prevented restoration work for years.

"This is serious. It poses a risk to the mosque as well as the worshippers
and those who stay in religious seclusion and work there. The occupation's
continued escalation of its Judaisation plans and systematic excavations in
Al-Aqsa expose its facilities and the fabric of the buildings to many
dangers. It is a heinous crime being done to provoke the Palestinians and
Muslims around the world."

Nevertheless, added Hamada, the people and the nation will support
Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa. "And our people will continue to act as a barrier to
defend them by all means."

The deputy head of the Islamic Religious Endowments Department in
Jerusalem, Dr Najeh Bakirat, also pointed out that the prevention of
restoration and repair work is a threat that could lead to the collapse of
vital structures within Al-Aqsa Sanctuary. "The occupation's approach," he
added, "poses a great threat to the mosque and other buildings that are
many hundreds of years old." He appealed to international organisations and
heritage bodies to prosecute the occupation state for not allowing the
damage in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque to be repaired.

*This article first appeared in Arabic in the Palestinian
Information Centre
<https://www.palinfo.com/news/2023/2/9/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%81%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D9%88%D9%85%D9%86%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%85-%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%AD%D8%AA%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B5%D9%84%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%B5%D9%89>on
9 February 2023*
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