Israeli Soldiers Enforce Closure of Al Aqsa
Israeli occupation authorities continued their closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Sunday, marking the 16th consecutive day of closure. As the 27th night of Ramadan approached, they transformed the area surrounding the mosque into a military zone.
The Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate stated that occupation forces had turned the Old City of Jerusalem into a military barracks, deploying hundreds of soldiers around it.
It added hundreds of Jerusalemites performed the Isha and Taraweeh prayers in the Bab al-Sahira and Bab al-Amud areas and in the streets, as the Old City and the Al-Aqsa Mosque remained closed “amid a siege by Israeli forces.”
These Israeli reinforcements coincided with calls on social media to break the siege of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and observe Laylat al-Qadr (Night of Power) within its precincts or wherever possible.
Since the start of the US-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28, the occupation authorities have closed the Al-Aqsa Mosque under the pretext of declaring a state of emergency and preventing gatherings.
Palestinians observe the 27th night of Ramadan (Laylat al-Qadr) by observing i’tikaf (seclusion for worship) in mosques, praying, supplicating, and reciting the Quran until dawn. Last year, approximately 180,000 people observed it at Al-Aqsa Mosque.
According to the Jerusalem Governorate, dozens of Jerusalemites performed the Isha and Taraweeh prayers near the Damascus Gate (Bab al-Sahira) on the northern side of the Old City of Jerusalem, amidst heavy military reinforcements and a large deployment of occupation forces.
The Wadi Hilweh Information Center for Human Rights stated that occupation forces erected checkpoints, stopped those entering the Old City, and prevented non-residents from entering.
The center noted the collapse of the Old City’s markets, which appear almost deserted, with most shops closed due to Israeli restrictions, during a season that merchants eagerly anticipate each year.
The Arab League, in a statement, condemned “in the strongest terms” the continued closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the prevention of prayers and religious rituals there, especially during the holy month of Ramadan and its last ten nights.
The university deemed this “provocative measure a flagrant violation of international law, international humanitarian law, and the existing legal and historical status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque/Haram al-Sharif, an unprecedented provocation of the feelings of two billion Muslims worldwide, and an undermining of freedom of worship and unrestricted access to places of worship.”
It emphasized that “Israel, the occupying power, has no sovereignty over the Palestinian territory occupied in 1967, including the occupied city of Jerusalem and its Islamic and Christian holy sites.”
It called upon the international community, including the Security Council, to assume its responsibilities and adopt a firm international stance that compels Israel, as the occupying power, to cease its violations and practices, lift all restrictions imposed on Palestinian access to Jerusalem, and respect freedom of worship. J024
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