Al-KHALIL, (PIC)
The Islamic Jihad Movement condemned the Israeli occupation forces’ (IOF) offensive on the Ibrahimi Mosque in the city of Al-Khalil, south of the West Bank, dubbing it a “crime against the Ibrahimi Mosque and the Islamic sanctities.”
The Movement said in a statement on Thursday evening, “The crime committed by the IOF today comes in the context of the Israeli plans to Judaize the Ibrahimi Mosque along with other holy sites, to enforce a state of spatial and temporal division between Palestinians and Israelis, and destabilize the existing historical, legal, and religious de facto situation at the Ibrahimi Mosque in order to change its Islamic identity.”
The statement stressed that “what happened today is a blatant violation of the dignity of Muslims, which requires Arab and Muslim countries and governments as well as human rights institutions to fulfill their responsibilities,” stressing “the need for mobilizing all forces in order to put an end to this Zionist aggression against our sanctities.”
“Our Palestinian people will not remain silent in the face of these attacks and will confront them with all their might in defense of their land, sanctities, and the dignity of all Muslims,” the Islamic Jihad added.
For his part, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories, and the preacher of the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, Muhammad Hussein said on Thursday that the Israeli closure of the courtyard of the Ibrahimi Mosque is “an attempt to Judaize the place, change its Islamic identity, structure and external appearance.”
He underscored that this attack “constitutes a serious violation of the holy place and the freedom of worship in it and a provocation to the feelings of Muslims. It also portends a dangerous escalation against Palestinian sanctities.”
The director of Al-Khalil Endowments, Ghassan Al-Rajabi, said in a press statement, “The Israeli occupation forces are taking advantage of the ongoing war on Gaza, in an attempt to change the Islamic features of the Ibrahimi Mosque,” calling it “a blatant attack against the sanctity and status quo of the Mosque.”
The Ibrahimi Mosque is located in Al-Khalil Old City which is under full control of the Israeli occupation authorities, and includes, according to some accounts, the tombs of the prophets Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
