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How Palestinians Use the Al-Aqsa Mosque to Encourage Terrorist Attacks

(Gatestone Institute) Bassam Tawil - Shortly after the October 7 massacre, Hamas published a report highlighting the motives behind its cross-border attack on Israel. "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood was a necessary step and a natural reaction against Israel's plans to...establish complete control over Al-Aqsa Mosque and holy sites." Last month, tens of thousands of Muslim worshipers converged on the mosque to attend special prayers for the end of the holy month of Ramadan and the Eid al-Fitr feast. In previous years, similar numbers of Muslim worshipers enjoyed unlimited access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. On April 12, the Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that Jews were planning "to storm the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque during the Jewish holidays." Hamas said, "[Jewish] threats posed to Al-Aqsa Mosque require mobilization and action at all levels to thwart the...plans to impose a new reality at the mosque and expel the Muslims." The PA and Hamas were referring to routine visits by Jews to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, where two ancient Jewish temples once stood. Notably, the Jewish visitors do not enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque during their outdoor tour of the Temple Mount compound. Moreover, the Islamic Waqf authorities do not ban non-Muslims from visiting the grounds around the mosque, so long as they do not set foot inside the mosque itself. Yet, peaceful and permitted outdoor tours to the grounds around the Al-Aqsa Mosque are regularly described by the PA and Hamas as violent incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque. When it comes to spreading defamation against Israel and Jews, the PA and Hamas are invariably in full agreement. It is time for the U.S. and other Western countries to impose consequences on Palestinian leaders, especially Mahmoud Abbas and his senior representatives, for spreading falsehoods and libels against Israel and Jews. It is precisely this type of rhetoric that incentivizes Palestinians to carry out terrorist attacks against Israelis and Jews. The mosque remains intact and is not facing any threat, despite Palestinian libels and lies. If anyone is desecrating the mosque, it is those who exploit it to encourage their people to carry out terrorist attacks.
2025-04-15 00:00:00
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