Palestine condemns forsaking of Muslims at Al-Aqsa

Muslim worshipers and those trying to protect Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque have been left at the mercy of those trying to divide and “Judaize” the holy site, said Palestinian officials on Sunday. Amid these destructive policies, more than a billion Muslims are ignoring the dangers facing Al-Aqsa, said a Palestinian Foreign Ministry statement. The ministry also denounced Israeli forces’ attacks on Muslim worshipers and Jewish settlers storming the mosque, including an incident on Sunday morning. The ministry said that it will raise the issue at the May 31 Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Saudi Arabia, stressing that issuing condemnations and decisions without taking real action is not enough. The statement stressed the seriousness of the intensification of Israel's aggressions against Muslim worshipers at al-Aqsa since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, through incursions, setting barriers, beating worshipers, and forcibly getting them out of the mosque. For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third-holiest site. Israel occupied East Jerusalem, in which Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. In a move never recognized by the international community, Israel annexed the entire city in 1980, claiming it as the Jewish state’s capital.