The
third holiest Muslim site, Al-Aqsa Mosque,
or Al-Haram Al-Sharif, has become a dangerous flashpoint that could ignite the
entire region. The shocking events of last week, when
Israeli soldiers stormed the holy site, beating worshipers and
causing serious damage to the main building, is an assault on a Muslim place of worship that is under the custody
of Jordan. Nothing can justify the barbaric Israeli action, which was repeated
for several days during Ramadan.
اضافة اعلان
For years now,
successive Israeli governments have been caving into the demands of Jewish extremists to alter the
historic status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque, allowing Jews to pray and perform
Talmudic rituals at the complex. But what is even more dangerous is that
prominent Israeli politicians are now talking openly about dividing the Muslim
mosque so Jews can pray inside the Haram at set times, thus turning the place
into a synagogue. Some scholars have called the incremental extension of
Israeli sovereignty over Al-Aqsa complex — what Jews call the Temple Mount —
the "Hebronization" of Al-Haram Al-Sharif, in reference to what
occurred at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron in 1972.
For years now, successive Israeli governments have been caving into the demands of Jewish extremists to alter the historic status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque, allowing Jews to pray and perform Talmudic rituals at the complex.
So far,
Israel has succeeded in the temporal division of Al-Aqsa, meaning Jewish pilgrims can enter the complex
under police protection almost every day at set hours. Despite Arab, Muslim,
and international denunciations, such provocative visits have increased, with
Jewish extremists performing Talmudic rituals while carrying posters of the
third temple replacing Al-Aqsa Mosque. The likes of Jewish extremists and the minister
of the current Israeli government, Itamar Ben Gvir, want access to the mosque
itself to enforce a de facto spatial division. And it is no secret that some
ultra-religious groups openly call for the mosque's destruction.
The mosque came under
Israeli attack soon after the fall of East Jerusalem in 1967. In August 1969, an Australian zealot
set fire to the historic pulpit at the mosque's main prayer hall. Attempts to
harm the mosque and worshipers continued over the following years. Israel has
frequently blocked Jordanian plans for essential renovation work at the site.
The Waqf personnel, including officials, guards, and ushers, have been harassed
by Israeli police regularly. But the most serious attempt to impose a new
reality at the compound occurred in September 2000 when Ariel Sharon, as leader
of the Likud Party, broke protocol and visited the site under heavy police
protection.
There is no legal or historical claim to the 1440 dunum compound by Israel. Every country in the world recognizes the Hashemite custodianship of Al-Aqsa.
That provocative tour of the site triggered
riots across the West Bank, leading to the eruption of the second Palestinian
Intifada.
Under Benyamin Netanyahu, breaches of Al-Aqsa compound became more
regular. On a number of occasions, tensions with Jordan mounted over unilateral
steps that successive Likud governments, all under Netanyahu, tried to impose
at the compound.
In 2014 and under US pressure,
Netanyahu recommitted to the historical status quo arrangement on Al-Aqsa with Jordan.
The status quo, which goes back to the mid-19th century, has been respected by
successive administrators of Palestine since. The arrangement recognizes the
compound and all it entails as an exclusively Muslim site. Accordingly,
Al-Aqsa's administration belongs to a Muslim institution, the Jerusalem Islamic
Waqf, which is under the custodianship of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
In 1878, Jerusalem's status quo arrangement
was internationally recognized in the Treaty of Berlin, signed between European
powers and the Ottoman Empire. Interestingly, an ad hoc commission established
under British mandate in 1929 determined that the Buraq Wall, what Jews call
the Wailing Wall, forms an integral part of Al-Aqsa Mosque and is, therefore, a
Muslim property.
Even as recently as this Monday, Netanyahu
continued to argue that
Israel will not change the historical status quo, but
his government's actions say otherwise.
Allowing a dangerous far-right government to tamper with the religious beliefs of millions of people in such a reckless manner is a crime.
There is no legal or historical claim to
the 1440 dunum compound by Israel. Every country in the world recognizes the
Hashemite custodianship of Al-Aqsa. It is important to note that
Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem, including the Old City, are illegal under
international law.
Still, Israel is mixing politics with
religion, a lethal cocktail that is undermining
freedom of worship in Jerusalem not only for Muslims but for Christians as well. Israel has broken all pledges
to keep the peace and allow Muslims to worship peacefully at Al-Aqsa. Unless it
receives a serious warning from the US, which is the only
country that may still have some influence over Israel, the current path will certainly lead to
a bloodbath. Allowing a dangerous far-right government to tamper with the
religious beliefs of millions of people in such a reckless manner is a crime.
Allowing Jewish ultra-religious zealots to escalate the situation is a recipe
for disaster.
Osama Al Sharif is a journalist and political
commentator based in Amman.
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