Tens of thousands perform Friday and absentee funeral prayers at Al-Aqsa

The Islamic Waqf Department in Jerusalem stated that tens of thousands performed Friday prayers at the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The occupation police announced that they arrested 13 worshipers from inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and at its gates before and after Friday prayers.

The occupation forces imposed a tight siege around the Old City and Al-Aqsa Mosque, and prevented young men from reaching it, including people with disabilities who use wheelchairs, as they were prevented from entering through the Lions' Gate in the city.

The occupation forces assaulted 3 young men near the Dar Al-Quran Al-Karim, and removed them after placing plastic zip ties on their hands, and escorted them out through the Mughrabi Gate.

The heavily armed special forces also brutally beat a young man in Al-Ghazali Square at the Lions' Gate and threw him to the ground before he could enter Al-Aqsa Mosque, while they arrested another from the courtyard of the Dome of the Rock Mosque at Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Since the early hours of dawn, the occupation forces set up iron barriers extensively in the vicinity of the Old City and the mosque, especially at the Lions' Gate, near the Council Gate, and the Wadi area. They stopped worshipers arriving at the mosque, checked their IDs, prevented others from reaching the mosque, and carried out provocative measures and body searches on a large number of young worshipers.

In turn, the preacher of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Dr. Sheikh Khaled Abu Juma, emphasized that "one of the factors of steadfastness and rootedness in our Holy City is the ancient Islamic Waqf (endowment), for it is the wall of Jerusalem, its fence, and its impregnable dam. The Waqf is one of the prides of Islam; it is an ancient historical system aimed at locking real estate assets and properties, preserving the sanctity and Islamic nature of the land. It is the legacy of our ancestors and fathers, in accordance with the Sunnah of our Prophet, peace be upon him, so that it may be a reward for them and a benefit for those after them. They built schools, dug wells, planted trees, harvested fruits, built houses and buildings, and established mosques, retreats, hospices, corners, and libraries for God."

He stressed that "the importance of the Waqf in the city of Jerusalem is manifested in its being the incubator and protector of it and the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, as it is the guarantor of the continuity of its maintenance and care, and it preserves the Islamic identity and Islamic presence in our Holy City."

The preacher emphasized that "the Sharia and legal ruling is that the ownership of Waqf lands cannot be sold, gifted, and it is forbidden to sell, waive, or infringe upon them."

Dr. Abu Juma began his sermon by calling on Muslims to be patient and to trust in the power and might of God in taking revenge on the oppressors.

He said: "Fear God Almighty and obey Him, and glorify Him with your hearts, words, and deeds; attach your hearts to Him, move your tongues with His remembrance, and set your pillars in His obedience; for He is the Great who must be glorified, and the All-Powerful who cannot be conquered. His knowledge encompasses all His creation, and He did not neglect them when He created them, but rather He managed them, provided for them, guaranteed them, gave them life, and caused them to die, and to Him is their return (Indeed, to your Lord is the return)."

The Al-Aqsa Mosque preacher added: "God Almighty has shown us of His power over individuals and nations what dazzles minds and terrifies hearts out of awe, fear, and glorification, (So I swear by the Lord of the risings and settings that We are indeed able * To replace them with better than them, and We are not to be outdone)."

Sheikh Abu Juma continued: "The biography of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is considered an integrated school, a clear methodology, and a straight path; because it contains honorable positions, noble benefits, and lessons and admonitions. This indicates the greatness of the compassion and mercy the Prophet, peace be upon him, had for the believers, and the wisdom and sagacity he had in managing the affairs of the Muslims."

The preacher recounted a touching story from the Prophetic biography, saying: "The reports passed down in the Prophetic biography document that the Messenger, peace be upon him, received in the year of the Conquest the delegation of Muslims who returned after their migration from Abyssinia, fleeing the harm and brutality of the disbelievers. He sat with them and asked about their condition, and he, peace be upon him, wanted to show the wisdom of the most amazing things they saw in the land of Abyssinia."

He stressed that "the Prophet, peace be upon him, denied sanctity and purity to the nation that tolerates the oppressive aggressor and does not support the weak."

Sheikh Abu Juma said: "The oppressors, tyrants, and traitors are cursed by those in the heavens and on earth; in fact, all beings and creatures curse them, even the whales in the seas and the birds in their nests, and with their death, the servants and the lands find rest from them."

He emphasized that "treachery is a vile trait; treachery is the characteristic of cowards, the characteristic of those for whom the Hereafter has vanished and who have forgotten the Day of Judgment. It is the characteristic of those who tyrannized in the land, destroyed the servants, and spread corruption; the characteristic of those who, when told 'do not spread corruption in the land,' say 'we are only reformers,' and it is the characteristic of those who, when they turn away, strive throughout the land to cause corruption therein and destroy crops and offspring. Treachery is the characteristic of the criminal who takes pleasure in hurting the oppressed."

He addressed the treacherous occupier, saying: "You will know your state and the state of the nation you betrayed, you will know your state and the state of the innocent people you oppressed, you will know your state and the state of the displaced people you displaced, you will know your state and the state of those whose money you stole, you will know your state and the state of those you terrorized, when God Almighty sets the Throne, gathers the first and the last, the hands and feet speak, and He calls you before the witnesses: O traitor, why did you betray with all forms of treachery?"

Sheikh Abu Juma concluded his sermon with a prayer, saying: "We ask God Almighty to help us preserve the trust of the Waqf that God has entrusted to us, and to take our souls while we hold this intention, neither tempted nor changed."

In a related context, data issued by the Jerusalem Governorate reported that the occupation authorities have issued about 850 expulsion orders from the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque since the beginning of this year, with the largest percentage concentrated during the period preceding and during the month of Ramadan, before the pace of expulsions resumed with the beginning of this September.

The advisor to the Governor of Jerusalem, Maarouf Al-Rifai, said that the expulsion orders specifically target groups that have a continuous and active presence in Al-Aqsa Mosque, including released prisoners, male and female Murabitin (defenders), those with a known presence inside Al-Aqsa Mosque, as well as academics, sheikhs, imams, and a number of Islamic Waqf Department employees and Al-Aqsa Mosque guards.

He explained that some expulsion orders take a broad character, not limited to preventing the person from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque, but extending in a number of cases to the surrounding areas, the Old City, and the roads leading to it.

He pointed out that there is a recurring coincidence between the escalation of expulsion orders and Hebrew occasions and holidays, in parallel with the increase in the pace of incursions and rituals inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and its vicinity, warning that the continuation of expulsion orders in parallel with the incursions and Jewish rituals during the "Hebrew holidays" season may lead to attempts to impose new facts inside the mosque and its surroundings.

Jerusalemite institutions warned against the occupation authorities and extremist settler groups exploiting Jewish holidays to intensify incursions and organize Judaization activities, in an attempt to impose new facts inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and change the status quo there.