Khaberni - The advisor to the governor of Jerusalem, Marouf Al-Rifai, warned of the significant and unprecedented historical decline in the number of guards at the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, due to escalating Israeli actions that target the Islamic Waqf Department and its employees.
In a press statement, Al-Rifai confirmed that what is happening poses a direct threat to the Waqf’s ability to fulfill its role in protecting and managing the mosque, explaining that the occupation authorities are implementing a systematic policy of reducing the number of guards and employees inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque, where the number of guards on duty during the morning period no longer exceeds 20 guards, out of more than 50 who make up the official number for one shift, in one of the most serious crises facing the guarding system in years.
He indicated that this severe decline results from a series of arbitrary measures, most notably the banning of more than 37 guards and employees from the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the cancellation of work permits for 30 administrative staff from the West Bank, leading to a clear paralysis in the functioning of various departments of the Waqf, including administrative, technical, and service aspects.
Al-Rifai clarified that these measures cannot be separated from a broader Israeli policy aimed at weakening the role of the Islamic Waqf Department and disrupting its ability to manage the affairs of the mosque, noting that the occupation authorities continue to prevent maintenance and restoration work, and even obstruct simple and necessary tasks inside the mosque, overtly interfering with the legal authority over it.
Al-Rifai pointed out that the occupation police have escalated their policy of gradually seizing facilities and landmarks within the Al-Aqsa Mosque under security pretenses, targeting four main facilities used by the Waqf as administrative headquarters and work sites: The Dome of Imam Al-Ghazali on the roof of Bab al-Rahma prayer hall, Dar al-Hadith al-Sharif in the northeastern part of the mosque, Solomon's Dome in the northern plaza, and Moses's Dome in the southwestern side.
He explained that the occupation forces deliberately storm these facilities, break their locks, and prevent the Waqf from rehabilitating or using them, in a clear attempt to empty them of their original function and gradually exclude them from the management of the Islamic Waqf, reflecting a dangerous trend towards imposing new facts on the ground inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Al-Rifai noted that this escalation coincides with other steps reflecting an unprecedented level of coordination between the occupation police and extremist "Temple" groups, where the occupation police announced on June 3 a campaign to recruit new volunteers for the so-called "Temple Mount unit," which undertakes the task of accompanying settlers and securing their intrusions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque and providing protection for their Talmudic rituals and violations within its courtyards.
He affirmed that this approach clearly reveals the occupation's attempt to expand the influence of extremist groups and their branches within the Al-Aqsa Mosque, parallel with reducing the role of the Islamic Waqf Department and disrupting its functions, serving the project of imposing Israeli control over the mosque and its facilities.
In a related context, Al-Rifai emphasized the need to boost the resilience of the Islamic Waqf Department's employees economically and financially, given the escalating living challenges they are facing, mentioning that their salaries are paid in Jordanian dinar, which, with the decline in its exchange rate against the shekel, has led to an erosion of its real value and increased financial burdens on them, especially with the exorbitant price increases in Israeli markets, affecting all aspects of life in Jerusalem.
He pointed out that this economic hardship may push some employees to seek additional sources of income, negatively affecting their ability to fully devote themselves to their duty of serving the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, calling for urgent direct financial support, alongside launching special programs and scholarships for educating their children in schools and universities, to alleviate their burdens, enhance their job stability, and enable them to continue their mission in protecting Al-Aqsa Mosque, in the face of attempts to undermine their role and weaken their presence within the mosque.
Al-Rifai stressed that all these measures are part of a comprehensive Israeli policy aimed at imposing control over the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and changing its historical and legal status, warning of the dangers of continuing this approach on the mosque's identity and religious status.
And he called on Arab and Islamic states, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the League of Arab States, to take prompt and effective action to stop these violations, protect the powers of the Islamic Waqf Department, and counter attempts to impose a new reality inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
He affirmed that the Al-Aqsa Mosque, with its total area of 144 dunums, is a purely Muslim place of worship, and that the Jerusalem Waqf Administration affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs and Holy Places is the only legal authority authorized to manage all its affairs and supervise it.
