Jerusalem Governorate: Integrating 'Temple' Groups into the Occupation Police at Al-Aqsa Represents a Serious Escalation

SadaNews - The Jerusalem Governorate stated that the Israeli occupation police's announcement of a campaign to recruit new "volunteers" for what is known as the "Temple Mount Unit" represents a dangerous development that openly reveals the occupation's intention to move towards a more advanced phase in its project to Judaize the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, through integrating the extremist so-called "Temple" groups and followers of the religious Zionism trend within the entity that the occupation uses to impose its ground control over Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The governorate explained, in a statement issued today Thursday, that the seriousness of the announcement lies not only in recruiting extremist elements within an existing unit but also in revealing the occupation's transition to a new phase of direct partnership between its executive institutions and the extremist "Temple" groups, as part of ongoing efforts to impose new realities within the Al-Aqsa Mosque and undermine the existing historical and legal status.

According to the announcement published by the occupation police, a number of prominent rabbis from the religious Zionism trend who support incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque appeared, including "Shmuel Eliyahu," "Shlomo Aviner," and "Eliakim Levanon," alongside the "unit commander 'Gai Tal'" and his deputy "Daniel Larch," both of whom are affiliated with the same trend. The Jerusalem Governorate views this joint appearance as reflecting not merely mutual support between the occupation police and the extremist "Temple" groups, but also reveals an advanced level of integration and coordination between them, confirming the existence of clear role integration and unity of goals within a single project aimed at enhancing the Israeli control imposed on Al-Aqsa Mosque, undermining the existing historical and legal situation, and accelerating steps towards its Judaization and imposing new realities that serve the agendas of extremist "Temple" groups.

The Jerusalem Governorate stressed that the essence of the issue does not relate to the recruitment announcement itself but to what it reveals about the occupation's efforts to transfer actual decision-making within Al-Aqsa Mosque from the Islamic Waqf, which has the legal and historical jurisdiction over it, to the occupation police and its various agencies.

According to the existing historical and legal status, the Jerusalem Waqf Administration and the affairs of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Holy Places, is the only entity with the authority to manage and supervise Al-Aqsa Mosque affairs. However, the occupation authorities are systematically working to undermine this role and impose themselves as the controlling party regarding entry into the mosque, its workers, and various details of the related field reality, paving the way for a broader Israeli control over it.

In this context, the governorate pointed out that recent months have seen a gradual escalation aimed at undermining the role of the Islamic Waqf and forcibly withdrawing its powers by disrupting its administrative, technical, and service work, imposing increasing restrictions on its employees and guards, and ultimately preventing it from carrying out many essential tasks related to managing Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Jerusalem Governorate believes that all of these measures confirm that the occupation is systematically working to impose an occupation-based authority that controls the field reality in Al-Aqsa Mosque at the expense of the legal and historical authority represented by the Islamic Waqf, in a blatant violation of the existing historical and legal status, and a continuous attempt to reshape the legal and administrative relationship in the mosque in a manner that serves Israeli Judaization and control projects.

The governorate noted that the new recruitment campaign for the "Temple Mount Unit" represents an additional link in the project to reshape the reality imposed on Al-Aqsa Mosque, by introducing ideological elements that openly adopt the ideas of the "Temple" groups into positions of influence and decision-making on the ground, which threatens further restrictions on worshippers, escalated incursions, and a broadening of biblical rituals within the mosque, leading to new realities that threaten the identity of Al-Aqsa Mosque and its historical and legal status.

The Jerusalem Governorate reiterated that the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, with its total area of 144 dunams, is a place of worship exclusively for Muslims, and that the Jerusalem Waqf Administration and the affairs of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Holy Places, is the legal entity with exclusive authority to manage all affairs of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and supervise it.

The governorate warned that the international silence regarding these policies has encouraged the occupation authorities to transition from protecting extremist "Temple" groups and providing cover for them to integrating them into the institutions implementing its policies at Al-Aqsa Mosque, making these institutions direct partners in the ongoing Judaization project. It called on the international community, the United Nations, and diplomatic missions working in Palestine to urgently move to stop these violations, ensure respect for the existing historical and legal status in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and confront attempts to impose Israeli sovereignty over it by force.