Hamas is calling its attack ‘Al-Aqsa Flood.’
AENN
This was sent to me by one of my subscribers, from someone he knows, who is presently in Dubai. It confirms that Operation Al-Aqsa Flood is intended to be a worldwide movement. AENN Staff
Mira Fox
Forward
Al-Aqsa is one of the holiest sites in Islam; according to Muslim beliefs, Muhammad ascended to heaven from the mosque, which is situated at the top of a hill in the center of Jerusalem’s Old City. But the mosque complex also stands on the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount, site of the First and Second Temples, which contained the Holy of Holies — the dwelling place of God — giving the area symbolic weight in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Both Israelis and Palestinians cite their history at the holy site as a proof of their claim to Jerusalem.
Al-Aqsa is seen by many Palestinians as a symbol of their national ambitions, and the desire for a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem. It is one of the only areas in Jerusalem that Israel does not officially consider under its administration, having handed it over to a Jordanian trust known as the Waqf after taking control of the Old City during the 1967 War.
Conversely, some Israelis, including Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s minister of national security, see control of the site as an important expression of Israel’s sovereignty over all of Jerusalem. Israel annexed the largely Palestinian East Jerusalem in 1980, a move that is not internationally recognized. (The U.S. recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital during the Trump Administration.)
Control of the complex around Al-Aqsa has long been hotly contested. The presence of Israeli security forces, as well as Jewish prayer at the site, is seen by Palestinians as an aggressive disruption of the status quo.
Prayer at Al-Aqsa as a flashpoint
Even on the best days, the atmosphere at the holy site is tense. While Muslims regularly pray at the mosque, Israeli forces sometimes limit Palestinian access. And though Christians and Jews can visit the site, they are not allowed to pray there, per Israel’s agreement with the Waqf. Historically, Israeli police have reprimanded or removed any non-Muslim attempting to pray, due to the fact that even the tiniest shifts in the norms are often interpreted by the other side as an act of aggression.
