AL-KHALIL, (PIC)
Israeli media revealed a new settlement plan supported by ministers and Knesset members from the governing coalition that aims to change the status quo in the Ibrahimi Mosque in al-Khalil, exploiting the world’s preoccupation with the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The Hebrew website “Zman Israel” reported that “the plan aims to transform the Ibrahimi Mosque into a national Jewish heritage site, including the confiscation of the site and making it similar to the Buraq Square at Al-Aqsa.” It noted that this plan has support from prominent American figures, including officials in the administration of President-elect Donald Trump.
The head of the Kiryat Arba settlement in al-Khalil said that ministers in premier Benjamin Netanyahu’s government confirmed that significant surprises are coming for the settlers, including “substantial developments” regarding Jewish prayer in the Ibrahimi Mosque. He added, “The arrangements imposed by the Shamgar Committee regarding prayer in (the Ibrahimi) after the Goldstein massacre have become outdated. The world has changed a lot since then, and it is time to review those decisions,” questioning, “How can Arabs pray inside, while we remain outside under the open sky?”
The report mentioned settlement celebrations that took place last Saturday inside the Ibrahimi Mosque with the participation of thousands of settlers, which witnessed a significant political presence, including ministers and Knesset members such as Itamar Ben Gvir, Bezalel Smotrich, and Orit Strock. Changing the status quo in the mosque was the central theme during those celebrations.
Knesset member Avichai Boaron from Netanyahu’s Likud party affirmed that Trump’s election represents a favorable opportunity to seize the Ibrahimi Mosque from the control of Islamic endowments, stressing the need to transform it into a modern place of prayer to solve current overcrowding issues.
Knesset member Tzvi Sukkot said that the area designated for Jewish prayer is 35 percent of the Ibrahimi Mosque’s area, adding, “This situation is unacceptable. Therefore, we are working to expand Jewish prayer arrangements to include the entire sanctuary throughout the day.”
Sukkot further noted that the proposed plans “include dramatic steps to change the administrative and logistical control of the site.”
Year of annexation
The “Zman Israel” report highlighted Bezalel Smotrich’s vision, supported by Boaron and Sukkot, which considers 2025 as the year to implement the annexation plan and impose Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, indicating that the plan classifies the Ibrahimi Mosque as a pivotal site.
The report stated that one of the American figures supporting this project, Mike Huckabee, who will take on the role of U.S. ambassador to Israel early next year, supports the “biblical vision” for complete control over historic Palestine.
The “Zman Israel” website warned that these political moves, backed by the American extreme right-wing, “forebode igniting a serious conflict in one of the most sensitive holy sites, putting the entire region at risk of escalation whose consequences are unpredictable.”
