Abbas’ advisor: Non-Muslims have no right to Temple Mount, including the Western Wall
Headline: "Al-Habbash in response to the statements of Erdan: Non-Muslims have no right to the Al-Aqsa Mosque"
"Supreme Shari’ah Judge of Palestine and [PA] President [Mahmoud Abbas’] advisor on Religious and Islamic Affairs Mahmoud Al-Habbash said that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is Islamic property that belongs to the Muslims alone by virtue of a divine decision, as is said in the Al-Isra Surah [of the Quran] (i.e., describing Prophet Muhammad's Night Journey – see note below), and by virtue of a UN resolution which was confirmed by the UN UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) [on Oct. 13, 2016], which refuted the false claims and narratives regarding it being non-Islamic.
Al-Habbash emphasized yesterday [Feb. 14, 2017] - in a press release in response to the statements of Israeli Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan (about the necessity to gather archeologists to attest to the Jewish history of Jerusalem –Ed.) - that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is a pure Islamic heritage, and that non-Muslims have no right to it. He emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is part of the Islamic faith, and prayer there [at the mosque] is the right of Muslims alone. Likewise, the Islamic [Jordanian] Waqf has the legal sovereignty over all facilities of the Jerusalem Noble Sanctuary (i.e., the Temple Mount) – the plazas, the gates, and the walls, including the Al-Buraq Wall (i.e., the Western Wall).”
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) passed a resolution in Paris on “Occupied Palestine” on Oct. 13, 2016, with 24 countries voting in favor, 6 against, and 24 abstentions. The resolution was later approved by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on Oct. 26, 2016, in a secret ballot in which ten countries voted in favor of the resolution, two opposed, eight abstained, and one country, Jamaica, was absent.
In the resolution UNESCO refers to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, only as “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif,” and presents it only as a “Muslim holy site.” The resolution condemns “escalating Israeli aggressions” and Israeli “violations” at the site, and calls on Israel “to respect the integrity, authenticity and cultural heritage of Al-Aqṣa Mosque/Al-Ḥaram Al-Sharif… as a Muslim holy site of worship.” The resolution likewise refers to the Western Wall Plaza as the “Al-Buraq Plaza ‘Western Wall Plaza,’” adding quotation marks to the Jewish name for the site.
The resolution was submitted by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan.
The countries voting for the resolution were: Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chad, China, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, and Vietnam.
Those voting against it were: Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, The Netherlands, the UK, and the US.
Mexico later noted for the record that its position on the issue is one of abstention, although the vote count was unaffected.
Full text here: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002462/246215e.pdf
Islam's Prophet Muhammad is said to have ridden during a Night Journey from Mecca to "al aqsa mosque", i.e., "the farthest mosque" (Quran, Sura 17). Five years after Muhammad's death in 632, Jerusalem was conquered by Islamic forces, and in the year 705, Muslim Umayyad leader Abd Al-Malik built a mosque in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount. The mosque was subsequently named the Al-Aqsa Mosque, to identify it as the mosque mentioned in the Quran, thus giving significance to Jerusalem in Islam as a place visited once by Muhammad.
"Supreme Shari’ah Judge of Palestine and [PA] President [Mahmoud Abbas’] advisor on Religious and Islamic Affairs Mahmoud Al-Habbash said that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is Islamic property that belongs to the Muslims alone by virtue of a divine decision, as is said in the Al-Isra Surah [of the Quran] (i.e., describing Prophet Muhammad's Night Journey – see note below), and by virtue of a UN resolution which was confirmed by the UN UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) [on Oct. 13, 2016], which refuted the false claims and narratives regarding it being non-Islamic.
Al-Habbash emphasized yesterday [Feb. 14, 2017] - in a press release in response to the statements of Israeli Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan (about the necessity to gather archeologists to attest to the Jewish history of Jerusalem –Ed.) - that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is a pure Islamic heritage, and that non-Muslims have no right to it. He emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque is part of the Islamic faith, and prayer there [at the mosque] is the right of Muslims alone. Likewise, the Islamic [Jordanian] Waqf has the legal sovereignty over all facilities of the Jerusalem Noble Sanctuary (i.e., the Temple Mount) – the plazas, the gates, and the walls, including the Al-Buraq Wall (i.e., the Western Wall).”
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) passed a resolution in Paris on “Occupied Palestine” on Oct. 13, 2016, with 24 countries voting in favor, 6 against, and 24 abstentions. The resolution was later approved by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee on Oct. 26, 2016, in a secret ballot in which ten countries voted in favor of the resolution, two opposed, eight abstained, and one country, Jamaica, was absent.
In the resolution UNESCO refers to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, only as “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif,” and presents it only as a “Muslim holy site.” The resolution condemns “escalating Israeli aggressions” and Israeli “violations” at the site, and calls on Israel “to respect the integrity, authenticity and cultural heritage of Al-Aqṣa Mosque/Al-Ḥaram Al-Sharif… as a Muslim holy site of worship.” The resolution likewise refers to the Western Wall Plaza as the “Al-Buraq Plaza ‘Western Wall Plaza,’” adding quotation marks to the Jewish name for the site.
The resolution was submitted by Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Sudan.
The countries voting for the resolution were: Algeria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chad, China, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, and Vietnam.
Those voting against it were: Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, The Netherlands, the UK, and the US.
Mexico later noted for the record that its position on the issue is one of abstention, although the vote count was unaffected.
Full text here: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002462/246215e.pdf
Islam's Prophet Muhammad is said to have ridden during a Night Journey from Mecca to "al aqsa mosque", i.e., "the farthest mosque" (Quran, Sura 17). Five years after Muhammad's death in 632, Jerusalem was conquered by Islamic forces, and in the year 705, Muslim Umayyad leader Abd Al-Malik built a mosque in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount. The mosque was subsequently named the Al-Aqsa Mosque, to identify it as the mosque mentioned in the Quran, thus giving significance to Jerusalem in Islam as a place visited once by Muhammad.