Top Jerusalem Islamic official calls on West to tell Israel: Don’t mess with Al-Aqsa

Top Jerusalem Islamic official calls on West to tell Israel: Don’t mess with Al-Aqsa Lubna Masarwa on Mon, 04/06/2026 - 15:53 Mustafa Abu Sway, deputy head of the Islamic Waqf, tells MEE the closure of the mosque risks destabilising the entire region A drone view of the Dome of the Rock in Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Western Wall following restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities, on 5 April 2026 (Reuters/Ilan Rosenberg) Off A senior member of the Islamic Waqf that administers Al-Aqsa Mosque has called on western governments to urge Israel not to "mess with the holy places in Jerusalem”. His call comes as alarm mounts that Israeli authorities are permanently seizing the occupied East Jerusalem site, one of the holiest in Islam, in contravention of the Status Quo agreement that enshrines its Islamic nature. For the last five weeks, Israel has imposed a blanket ban on Muslims entering the mosque, even including for Friday prayers, Eid al-Fitr and Laylat al-Qadr. The forced closure left the ancient and revered mosque and its vast courtyards empty throughout almost all of Ramadan, with Muslims resorting to holding prayers on the surrounding streets instead. In a rare public intervention, Mustafa Abu Sway, deputy head of the Islamic Waqf council, told Middle East Eye that the closure risked destabilising the whole region. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); “If we are talking about the stability of the region, the western governments should come forward with statements about the stability of the Status Quo which will not allow Security Minister [Itamar] Ben Gvir or Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu to cause more damage,” he said. “This would send a clear message to Israel they should not mess with the holy places in Jerusalem.” There is frustration among Muslim Palestinians that the West is displaying double standards when it comes to Muslim and Christian worship. A week ago, the United States, Italy, Spain, the Vatican and others strongly rebuked Israel for denying Catholic leaders from worshipping in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday. Their statements forced a near-instant reversal from Netanyahu. By contrast, the Israeli closure of Al-Aqsa has been greeted by western silence. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Jordanian MP Saleh al-Armouti, head of the Islamic Action Front parliamentary bloc, has pointedly described the Vatican’s intervention on behalf of the Holy Sepulchre as a “brave and courageous stance”. “I call on the Pope to demand the opening of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque,” he said. Rigidly enforced Israel closed Al-Aqsa Mosque on 28 February, the day it launched a war on Iran alongside the United States, citing security concerns. The Old City, where Al-Aqsa Mosque sits alongside several other major Christian and Jewish sites such as the Holy Sepulchre and the Western Wall, has also been largely closed off. But while the restrictions of Jewish and Christian sites have been occasionally relaxed, Al-Aqsa’s closure has been rigidly enforced. And in late February, shortly before the war and closure, the mosque’s imam, Sheikh Muhammad al-Abbasi, was arrested inside its courtyards. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Muslim-majority countries, led by Jordan, have repeatedly petitioned the Israeli authorities to allow worshippers in. In early March, a joint statement by eight of them denounced the restrictions as a “flagrant violation” of both international law and “the principle of unrestricted access to places of worship”. The statement noted that Israel has no right to control Al-Aqsa, stressing that the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs is the “legal entity with exclusive jurisdiction”. In common with Jerusalem’s other holy sites, Al-Aqsa Mosque is governed under the Status Quo arrangements, dating back to the 19th century if not before. Al-Aqsa and the Holy Sepulchre: How has Israel undermined the Status Quo? Read More » Within the Status Quo, Al-Aqsa Mosque is managed through the Waqf, which is under Jordanian custodianship. Israel formally recognised the Status Quo after it took control of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war - and with it accepted that Muslims had control of access, security and the general character of the site. Last week, the same eight Muslim-majority countries issued a fresh statement again asking for the mosque to be reopened, citing the “existing legal and historical status quo”. It was once again ignored by the Israeli authorities. When Middle East Eye reported from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Friday, the area around Al-Aqsa was thick with Israeli soldiers ready to repel attempts to enter. Though MEE could not view the walled courtyards, which sit on a raised plateau, an intimidating military presence is typically in evidence inside the compound itself, where soldiers have long strolled around at will, and a military post has been installed. Sources have told MEE that recent Israeli interference in Al-Aqsa goes far deeper than the ban on worship. MEE understands that Israeli police are preventing Waqf employees from entering the mosque for maintenance work, imposing a limit of 25 people out of a workforce of approximately 1,000. This intrusion has given rise to fears that Israel may change the rules that have governed the site when it finally reopens, allocating additional space to Jewish worshippers or extra time for Jewish prayers. Though Israel’s chief rabbinate has long banned Jewish prayer in Al-Aqsa, which is believed to sit on the site of the Jewish temples destroyed in antiquity, ultranationalists have increasingly stormed the site and worshipped there with the backing of ministers such as Ben Gvir. However, the possibility of such a formal shift was ruled out by Mustafa Abu Sway. He told MEE: “King Abdulla has said Al-Aqsa Mosque is a red line. No time sharing. No space sharing. He has left no room for doubt.” “I am happy that Jordan has our back,” he added. “Without Jordanian support, Israel would have had a free hand at Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Jordanians will never compromise the Status Quo.” War on Iran Peter Oborne Jerusalem Jerusalem News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0