Hebron, MINA – Israel occupation has ordered the seizure of the roof of the inner courtyard at Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque, a move Palestinian officials denounced as another attempt to strip Islamic authority over one of the most sensitive holy sites in the occupied West Bank, Anadolu Agency reported.
According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the expropriation order, covering 288 square meters, was issued on Monday.
Commission head Moayyad Shaaban said the decision deepens Israel’s encroachment on religious sites in violation of international norms, stressing that it effectively transfers oversight from Palestinian religious authorities and the Hebron municipality to illegal settler councils. This, he warned, strengthens Israel’s administrative and security control over the shrine.
The commission called on UNESCO and the United Nations to intervene, saying that protecting the mosque is vital to safeguarding Hebron’s identity and Palestinian rights over their sacred sites.
Also Read: Israel Continues Deadly Gaza Strikes Despite Announcing Reduced Military Aggression
Earlier this year, Israel Hayom reported that Israeli authorities had already transferred administrative powers over the mosque from the Palestinian Ministry of Endowments and Hebron’s municipality to an illegal settler religious body in Kiryat Arba.
In 2017, UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee recognized the Ibrahimi Mosque as a Palestinian heritage site.
Located in Hebron’s Old City, the mosque sits in an area where around 400 illegal settlers live under the heavy guard of about 1,500 Israeli soldiers.
The site was divided by Israel in 1994 after an Israeli settler massacred 29 Palestinian worshippers, allocating roughly two-thirds to Jewish worship and the rest to Muslims. []
Also Read: Hamas Khalil al-Hayya Reappears After Surviving Israeli Assassination Attempt
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
Mina Indonesia
Mina Arabic
Mina Sport