The Israeli police prevented worshipers other than residents of the Old City of Occupied Jerusalem from reaching the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform Friday prayer under the pretext of closure imposed by the Israeli government.

The Israeli police deployed barriers and tightened their procedures at the Damascus Gate and the rest of the gates and prevented worshipers from accessing Al-Aqsa.

During the Friday sermon, the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, warned against the Israeli occupation’s exploitation of the health conditions represented by the coronavirus pandemic by closing Al-Aqsa and completing the Judaization of the city and its holy sites.

Sheikh Hussein stressed that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is witnessing a fierce attack by settlers and others in an attempt to impose a new fait accompli.

He described the demands by the so-called Temple Groups to remove the Dome of the Rock Mosque to establish the alleged Temple as “rude”.

The preacher called on the Palestinian factions and parties to unify their position and called on Muslims to travel to the Al-Aqsa Mosque to protect it.

He praised the Jerusalemites for their efforts to protect their homes, lands, and properties in the city despite the injustice inflicted on them.

Sheikh Hussein emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque, as every Muslim in the world knows, is composed of the whole 144-dunum area inside the wall, with all the yards, landmarks, terraces and chapels.

 

Source: The Palestinian Information Center