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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Ramallah - Asharq Al-Awsat

OIC Denounces Israeli Aggressions against Al-Aqsa

Israeli police officers inside the al-Aqsa Mosque compound (AFP)

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) warned of the consequences of the continued infringement on the al-Aqsa Mosque, including the ongoing provocations, abuses, and daily assaults, according to the Palestinian News Agency (Wafa).

The OIC Executive Committee held an extraordinary, open-ended meeting in Riyadh to consider the continuous Israeli attacks on the blessed al-Aqsa Mosque at the request of Palestine and Jordan and in coordination and consultation with Saudi Arabia, the current Chair of the Summit and Executive Committee.

The Organization said this is a "gross violation of international law and an unprecedented tampering with the existing historical and legal situation to perpetuate the temporal and spatial division of al-Aqsa Mosque."

The Israeli occupation has no sovereignty over any part of the blessed al-Aqsa Mosque, al-Haram Al-Qudsi Ash-Sharif, it stressed, adding that Muslim worshipers have the absolute right to pray freely and safely in and around it, at any time, without any hindrance or violence inflicted on them.

The Council reaffirmed the centrality of the Palestinian Cause, with al-Quds Ash-Sharif and its sanctities at its heart, for the entire Islamic Ummah and the eternal attachment of Muslims worldwide to the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first of the two Qiblas and the third of the Holy Mosques.

It condemned in the strongest terms the dangerous escalation by the Israeli occupation forces and terrorist settlers by repeatedly storming the blessed al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan month.

The statement warned that the "atrocious brutal attack on the night of Ramadan 14 on worshipers and those stationed in its courtyards while performing their prayers and rituals" is a flagrant provocation to the feelings of Muslims all over the world.

It described it as "an attack on the existing legal and historical situation, and a severe violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions."

The OIC held Israel, the occupying power, accountable for the consequences that would result from these dangerous provocative actions.

It warned of possible repercussions on international peace and security.

It called on the international community, including the UN Security Council, in its capacity as responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, to assume its responsibilities and take urgent action and necessary measures to deter and stop the dangerous Israeli escalation and all other illegal and provocative standards and policies.

The Organization stressed the responsibility of the state parties to the Geneva Conventions to hold Israel accountable.

It affirmed the historical Jordanian Hashemite Custodianship over Jerusalem's Islamic and Christian holy places and its role in protecting these sanctities and preserving the existing legal and historical status therein.

The statement confirmed that the al-Quds Endowments and Affairs Department of the al-Aqsa Mosque is authorized to manage Al-Aqsa Affairs.

It reaffirmed the vital role of the al-Quds Committee under the leadership of Moroccan King Mohamed VI in challenging the destructive policies implemented by the Israeli authorities to change the legal status of the city and its demographic, cultural, and historical composition.

It called for "international protection for the Palestinian people and the occupied al-Quds Ash-Sharif and its sanctities," specifically the blessed al-Aqsa Mosque, in the face of illegal attempts to change their current legal and historical situation.

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