Below is Abbas speech at Doha:
In the Name of Allah, Most Geacious, Most Merciful
"Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing." God Almighty has spoken the truth.
His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani,
Moroccan Prime Minister, Mr. Abdelilah Benkirane,
His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Mr. Nabil Al Arabi,
In the beginning, I would send my sincerest thanks and appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani for hosting this significant conference in Doha where we signed adeclaration a few days ago on its spacious land to accelerate the Palestinian national conciliation steps which we already signed in Cairo to put an end to the disputed issues. I would also thank my brother the Secretary-General of the Arab League and its Secretariat General and personnel, and all those who contributed to the arrangement of this conference.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The International Conference for Defending and Protecting Jerusalem is being held today amid a very critical and exceptional phase concerning the capital of Palestine and its beating heart, and the challenges and dangers it is encountering, which is forbidden to be ignored and pass without resisting it from now on.
Giving full answers to the here existing challenges is a great responsibility, prompting all the concerned people about Jerusalem to approve policies and provide the possibilities to ensure the success of keeping its Arab-Islamic and Christian character. It is the Prophet's (peace be upon him) Ascendance to Heaven, the First Qibla to Muslims; the Second Mosque and the Third Noble Sanctuary; It is the city of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the mosque of the Dome of the Rock, and it is the city of the Church of Holy Sepulcher and Via Dolorosa, and it is the city which has to be a symbol of peace.
Within this scope, we have to focus our reading on what seems to be general and significant regarding the Israeli plans which the city faces. This will enable us to draw out certain conclusions that would prove the promotion of our performance to the level of such challenges.
Reviewing the events which Jerusalem has been witnessing during the past few years and today by the occupation practices can lead to one conclusion: The Israeli occupation authorities are using the ugliest and most unprecedented dangerous means to implement plans to erase and remove the Arab-Islamic and the Christian character of East Jerusalem and to make it the capital of the occupation state, contrary to more than 15 UN Security Council resolutions which call on Israel to retreat its procedures and consider them void. In this respect, I would support His Highness the Emir's suggestion to raise the issue of Jerusalem in the Security Council.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The occupation authority's attempts to achieve its final goal through these plans in Jerusalem are being implemented in three interrelated and correlated pivots.
The first pivot: This is the pivot through which the occupation authority changes the tiniest details of the sacred landscape and structure, believing they could erase from the world's memory and awareness the image of the glittering golden rock of the Noble Rock, and the deep and long established visionary brilliant image of the neighborhood and brotherhood of the minarets of the mosques with the domes of the churches amidst the city's walls witnessing the history, memories and occurrences. They are fancying that they could create a history, establish claims and cancel religious and historical facts.
In this context, Jerusalem witnesses an unprecedented acceleration of settlement attack, where work is being done day and night to create false details in Jerusalem scene, where the architectural features come in contradiction with the Arab civilized and cultural roots under which the city of Al Aqsa and the Church of Holy Sepulcher were established.
Since the removal of the Maghariba Quarter (the Moroccan Quarter) inside the Old City of Jerusalem following 1967 War by the occupation forces, they continue demolishing homes which carry historical symbols, such as Karm Al-Mufti (the Shepherd's Hotel) and others, and build settlements on lands confiscated from residents in the Holy City.
In spite of all enormous possibilities which the occupation forces put at the disposal of the extremists to carry out the ongoing excavations threatening to destroy Al Aqsa Mosque in order to obtain evidence that would support the Israeli vision of Judaism, they miserably failed. However, that didn't prevent them from competing with time to implement whatever would give the Jewish character of the city, beginning from the construction of synagogues to block Al Aqsa scene and the preparation of solids to the so-called "the Temple" for the purpose of building it on Al Aqsa remains to the establishment of the so-called the "Biblical Gardens" at the expense of the residents' lands and homes in Jerusalem.
Within a similar context, Jerusalem has been surrounded by the apartheid wall as well as an enclosure of settlements to separate the city from its surroundings in the West Bank and to interrupt the sequence between the northern and southern regions of the West Bank.
The second pivot is the completion of the ethnic cleansing plan: Since the very beginning in 1967 War, the occupation launched a plan with a purpose of prompting the Palestinian citizens to leave their own city by exhausting Jerusalem residents with a fleet of various expensive taxes connected with penal procedures so as to force traders, business owner and most residents to close their businesses and leave the city. The occupation forces also adopted a policy of rejecting to give home construction permits. Instead, they are destroying homes which have been built without permit. These plans were culminated with the withdrawal of the Jerusalem residents' identity cards and depriving them of residence in their homeland. In the past months, the situations took another serious curve when the occupation forces arrested Jerusalem representatives, then issued and enforced orders to deport them outside their city and away from their families. Simultaneously, the occupation forces encourage settlers to seize the Arab homes and force their dwellers to leave.
The action carried out by the occupation forces is the ethnic cleansing in the fullest sense of the word against the Palestinian citizens to make them a minority at the best, having only the capacity as residents versus the enhancement of the Jewish existence by building more settlements.
The third pivot: Through this pivot, the occupation forces impoverish the Holy City and destroy its infrastructure as well as its economic potential although it has always been the title of prosperity, the economic, tourist, medical and educational main activity center and the cultural, intellectual and artistic hub in Palestine. To achieve this, the occupation forces closed several Palestinian institution offices, such as the Orient House, the offices belonging to the vocational and labor unions and the Chamber of Commerce which was established in the 1930s before 1948 Nakba and the establishment of Israel. They also refuse to give construction permits for the construction of hospitals, universities, schools, hotels, homes and commercial compounds, and they enacted regulations and took procedures to control the flow of tourists to keep them away from the Palestinian owned hotels in the city.
The most serious procedure - in addition the procedure taken to enclose Jerusalem with a series of settlements in order to separate it from the rest of the West Bank, is the erection of permanent barriers by the occupation forces since the 1990s under which the Palestinians are banned to enter Jerusalem for prayer, work, medical treatment, study, marketing or visiting their families and relatives without nearly impossibly attainable permits.
Yes, our people in Gaza and the West Bank are not allowed to visit Al Aqsa Mosque and the Church of Holy Sepulcher to perform prayers and religious ceremonies. Where is the freedom of worship which is a basic right for everyone under all the international conventions?
A generation was born and grown up, ladies and gentlemen, and they are not able to visit their sacred city which is only a few minutes or at most a 30-minute drive away from their city, village or camp.
This procedure causes what could be similar to the stoppage of blood flow from the veins to the heart. Through its history, Jerusalem used to receive tens of thousands of people coming from other Palestinian towns every day who were flocking to its sacred places, markets, schools, hospitals, factories and workshops. The occupation aims to deprive Jerusalem of its historical and religious role, and it desires to obliterate its distinguished character as a global leading civilized center that never stops contributing and enriching the human civilization, trying to change it into old unsteady neighborhoods, deserted mosques and churches and empty markets and streets; it is attempting to take the jewel of Palestine and its cities back to the old centuries.
Ladies and gentlemen,
These are the factual witnesses in the city of messengers, and these are challenges ahead of both Arab-Muslim and Christian nations throughout the world. If we agreed on defining the goals of the occupation's plans, it would be so simple to determine the means of confrontation.
One of our main conclusions which may rise to the level of challenge is to stress on what is required – to support the steadfastness and firmness of the Jerusalemites, the protectors of the sacred city, who, despite the dark image generated by the enormous and brutality of the occupation attack, will remain the ray of hope and the insurance of success and steadfastness given to the fact that they are the people of Jerusalem, the firebrand grippers in the Sacred Home and around the Sacred Home. They are also the people of the land of resurrection and gathering. Regardless of the attempts and the plans, Jerusalem will remain Arabic in heart, emotion, spirit and language. The people of Jerusalem will - hand in hand with the rest of their nation - challenge the impossible situations, living in their city, overcrowding and protecting Al Aqsa and the cities mosques and churches. When Israel threatens to withdraw the Jerusalemite non-residents' identities, thousands of them decided to return and some big families lived in small rooms to undermine the occupation plan.
I also would like to state that there are a number of detailed studies and projects which were conducted in different sectors during the past decades on what must be done to rescue Jerusalem. There are approved Palestinian mechanisms and highly professional and well-witnessed staff for their competency and transparency throughout all the international institutions who have the ability to implement any proposed projects. I also would like to point out that there have been decisions taken during the Arab summits, of which the last one was taken in the Second Serte Summit on the support for Jerusalem, but they were not implemented. Recently, we have agreed through the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which approved of the plan we already proposed for Jerusalem, to work hand in hand so that each one of the able Arab and Islamic states would support one of the our people's steadfastness sectors in Jerusalem, such as health, education, residence, infrastructure, culture, religious sites, trade, economy, … etc. Yesterday, when I met with the Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsan Oglu, we agreed on the plan and the implementation mechanism. Dr. Oglu will personally follow up the implementation of the plan which we hope it would turn into actions for the enhancement of our people in the sacred city of Jerusalem. In this occasion, I would like to thank the Islamic Bank for the projects it has funded to support our people in the city.
In this occasion, I would highly appreciate the clear vision and the proposed plans and actions stated in the "Jerusalem document" which was announced by the Grand Imam of Al Azhar Mosque a few days ago during the closing session of a conference held in Cairo and dedicated to Jerusalem for. In this respect, I would point to the report made by the EU Consuls on Jerusalem.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The core of any work we perform lies in the perception and establishment of Jerusalem as the center of the Palestinian question. Hence, we abide by our principal stand- not to resume negotiations as long as the occupation forces do not respect their commitments of settlement halt, mainly in Jerusalem.
From this point, we are required to work on various pivots, including:
The first pivot: the question of Jerusalem has to be the main heading and the basic core in the political and economic relationships between the Arab and Islamic states and the rest of the world. We are required to make up a unified action plan with the different Christian churches which concern about keeping the churches as homes of worship, not tourist sites, particularly because there are thousands of Christian believers who annually make pilgrimage visits to the Holy Land.
Accordingly, and from this stage, we confirm that the so-called "Jerusalem Annexation" law which was enacted on the 27th of June 1967 shall be deemed void … void … void! East Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Palestine.
The second pivot: Seeking the enhancement of the infrastructure for the people of Jerusalem through projects dedicated to support the institutions and other projects in the Holy City. We can here expand the participation scope to include the national institutions together with the Arab and Islamic governments. There are wide opportunities to establish twin relationships and partnerships between similar institutions in various educational, learning, economic, cultural and social sectors. There are also wide opportunities to make a quality difference through a series of small projects which could include a large number of Arab Muslims and Christians together in the desired effort. Here comes the vital role of the private sector businessmen from the Arab world.
The third pivot: this pivot has to do with the creation of a permanent state of communication with the people of Jerusalem to break the siege imposed on the city and its people. I would here point to the leading role by our brothers in the 1948 areas who constantly organize visits that include thousand of people and flock to the sacred city which is surrounded by settlement, the apartheid wall and the occupation's barriers, filling its mosques and helping thrive its markets to make its people feel they are not alone.
It is necessary then that we encourage whoever has the ability, particularly our brothers from the Arab and Islamic world, in addition to our Muslim and Christian brothers in Europe and America to visit Jerusalem. This move will have its political, emotional, economic and human impact. Jerusalem concerns and minds us all, and no one can prevent us from having access to it. Making crowds streaming towards it and making its streets and sacred sites busy will enhance the steadfastness of its people and this will contribute to protection and the establishment of the city's history and heritage under the threat of uproot target. This will remind the occupiers that the question of Jerusalem is every Arab's, Muslim's and Christian's. I would emphasize here that the prisoner visit is a kind of support for him, and it doesn't mean in anyway a type of normalization with the jailer.
We shall always remember the saying (Hadith) by the Prophet (peace be upon him):
"Do not set out on a journey except for three Mosques, i.e. Al-Masjid-AI-Haram, the Mosque of Allah's Apostle, and the Mosque of Al-Aqsa, (Mosque of Jerusalem)."
Al Aqsa Mosque was not then under the rule of Muslims, but it was under the Roman rule. The saying (Hadith) is generalized in all times and situations.
I ask the Arab brothers to support Jerusalem and its steadfast people. I quote from a saying by the Prophet (peace be upon him) when he was asked about Al Aqsa Mosque while he ordered to visit it and perform prayer, he said: "He who can't visit it should gift it with some oil to light its lambs." Material support to enhance the people's steadfastness may take the form of olive oil, fuel or anything else.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) came by night to the sacred home (Jerusalem) during the Isra and Mi'raj incident where he leads other prophets in prayer in Al Aqsa Mosque when it was under the Roman – not Muslim – rule.
Before that, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stayed years in Mecca, praying at Ka'aba while there were tens of idols. This wasn't an acknowledgement of the pagan legitimacy, but rather a confirmation of his legitimate right in Al Masjid Al Haram (the Sacred Mosque).
When he decided to visit Al Masjid Al Haram (the Sacred Mosque) following the Hijra (Mohammed's flight from Mecca to Medina in 622 AD), he was forced to get approval from Quraish disbelievers who were controlling over Mecca. Nobody dares to say that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had normalized relations with them. So, the prisoner visit is not normalization with the jailer as we said.
Then, has the visit to Jerusalem and Al Aqsa been outlawed by any Muslim jurist when they were under the Crusaders' rule?
And did Muslims stop visiting Jerusalem during the British mandate when the British High Commissioner used to live on the top of Jabal Al-Mukaber that towers over Al Aqsa Mosque, supervising and administering the Holy City?
Again, we confirm you that the prisoner visit doesn't mean normalization with the jailer.
In the Name of Allah, Most Geacious, Most Merciful
"Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing." God Almighty has spoken the truth.
His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani,
Moroccan Prime Minister, Mr. Abdelilah Benkirane,
His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Mr. Nabil Al Arabi,
In the beginning, I would send my sincerest thanks and appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani for hosting this significant conference in Doha where we signed adeclaration a few days ago on its spacious land to accelerate the Palestinian national conciliation steps which we already signed in Cairo to put an end to the disputed issues. I would also thank my brother the Secretary-General of the Arab League and its Secretariat General and personnel, and all those who contributed to the arrangement of this conference.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The International Conference for Defending and Protecting Jerusalem is being held today amid a very critical and exceptional phase concerning the capital of Palestine and its beating heart, and the challenges and dangers it is encountering, which is forbidden to be ignored and pass without resisting it from now on.
Giving full answers to the here existing challenges is a great responsibility, prompting all the concerned people about Jerusalem to approve policies and provide the possibilities to ensure the success of keeping its Arab-Islamic and Christian character. It is the Prophet's (peace be upon him) Ascendance to Heaven, the First Qibla to Muslims; the Second Mosque and the Third Noble Sanctuary; It is the city of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the mosque of the Dome of the Rock, and it is the city of the Church of Holy Sepulcher and Via Dolorosa, and it is the city which has to be a symbol of peace.
Within this scope, we have to focus our reading on what seems to be general and significant regarding the Israeli plans which the city faces. This will enable us to draw out certain conclusions that would prove the promotion of our performance to the level of such challenges.
Reviewing the events which Jerusalem has been witnessing during the past few years and today by the occupation practices can lead to one conclusion: The Israeli occupation authorities are using the ugliest and most unprecedented dangerous means to implement plans to erase and remove the Arab-Islamic and the Christian character of East Jerusalem and to make it the capital of the occupation state, contrary to more than 15 UN Security Council resolutions which call on Israel to retreat its procedures and consider them void. In this respect, I would support His Highness the Emir's suggestion to raise the issue of Jerusalem in the Security Council.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The occupation authority's attempts to achieve its final goal through these plans in Jerusalem are being implemented in three interrelated and correlated pivots.
The first pivot: This is the pivot through which the occupation authority changes the tiniest details of the sacred landscape and structure, believing they could erase from the world's memory and awareness the image of the glittering golden rock of the Noble Rock, and the deep and long established visionary brilliant image of the neighborhood and brotherhood of the minarets of the mosques with the domes of the churches amidst the city's walls witnessing the history, memories and occurrences. They are fancying that they could create a history, establish claims and cancel religious and historical facts.
In this context, Jerusalem witnesses an unprecedented acceleration of settlement attack, where work is being done day and night to create false details in Jerusalem scene, where the architectural features come in contradiction with the Arab civilized and cultural roots under which the city of Al Aqsa and the Church of Holy Sepulcher were established.
Since the removal of the Maghariba Quarter (the Moroccan Quarter) inside the Old City of Jerusalem following 1967 War by the occupation forces, they continue demolishing homes which carry historical symbols, such as Karm Al-Mufti (the Shepherd's Hotel) and others, and build settlements on lands confiscated from residents in the Holy City.
In spite of all enormous possibilities which the occupation forces put at the disposal of the extremists to carry out the ongoing excavations threatening to destroy Al Aqsa Mosque in order to obtain evidence that would support the Israeli vision of Judaism, they miserably failed. However, that didn't prevent them from competing with time to implement whatever would give the Jewish character of the city, beginning from the construction of synagogues to block Al Aqsa scene and the preparation of solids to the so-called "the Temple" for the purpose of building it on Al Aqsa remains to the establishment of the so-called the "Biblical Gardens" at the expense of the residents' lands and homes in Jerusalem.
Within a similar context, Jerusalem has been surrounded by the apartheid wall as well as an enclosure of settlements to separate the city from its surroundings in the West Bank and to interrupt the sequence between the northern and southern regions of the West Bank.
The second pivot is the completion of the ethnic cleansing plan: Since the very beginning in 1967 War, the occupation launched a plan with a purpose of prompting the Palestinian citizens to leave their own city by exhausting Jerusalem residents with a fleet of various expensive taxes connected with penal procedures so as to force traders, business owner and most residents to close their businesses and leave the city. The occupation forces also adopted a policy of rejecting to give home construction permits. Instead, they are destroying homes which have been built without permit. These plans were culminated with the withdrawal of the Jerusalem residents' identity cards and depriving them of residence in their homeland. In the past months, the situations took another serious curve when the occupation forces arrested Jerusalem representatives, then issued and enforced orders to deport them outside their city and away from their families. Simultaneously, the occupation forces encourage settlers to seize the Arab homes and force their dwellers to leave.
The action carried out by the occupation forces is the ethnic cleansing in the fullest sense of the word against the Palestinian citizens to make them a minority at the best, having only the capacity as residents versus the enhancement of the Jewish existence by building more settlements.
The third pivot: Through this pivot, the occupation forces impoverish the Holy City and destroy its infrastructure as well as its economic potential although it has always been the title of prosperity, the economic, tourist, medical and educational main activity center and the cultural, intellectual and artistic hub in Palestine. To achieve this, the occupation forces closed several Palestinian institution offices, such as the Orient House, the offices belonging to the vocational and labor unions and the Chamber of Commerce which was established in the 1930s before 1948 Nakba and the establishment of Israel. They also refuse to give construction permits for the construction of hospitals, universities, schools, hotels, homes and commercial compounds, and they enacted regulations and took procedures to control the flow of tourists to keep them away from the Palestinian owned hotels in the city.
The most serious procedure - in addition the procedure taken to enclose Jerusalem with a series of settlements in order to separate it from the rest of the West Bank, is the erection of permanent barriers by the occupation forces since the 1990s under which the Palestinians are banned to enter Jerusalem for prayer, work, medical treatment, study, marketing or visiting their families and relatives without nearly impossibly attainable permits.
Yes, our people in Gaza and the West Bank are not allowed to visit Al Aqsa Mosque and the Church of Holy Sepulcher to perform prayers and religious ceremonies. Where is the freedom of worship which is a basic right for everyone under all the international conventions?
A generation was born and grown up, ladies and gentlemen, and they are not able to visit their sacred city which is only a few minutes or at most a 30-minute drive away from their city, village or camp.
This procedure causes what could be similar to the stoppage of blood flow from the veins to the heart. Through its history, Jerusalem used to receive tens of thousands of people coming from other Palestinian towns every day who were flocking to its sacred places, markets, schools, hospitals, factories and workshops. The occupation aims to deprive Jerusalem of its historical and religious role, and it desires to obliterate its distinguished character as a global leading civilized center that never stops contributing and enriching the human civilization, trying to change it into old unsteady neighborhoods, deserted mosques and churches and empty markets and streets; it is attempting to take the jewel of Palestine and its cities back to the old centuries.
Ladies and gentlemen,
These are the factual witnesses in the city of messengers, and these are challenges ahead of both Arab-Muslim and Christian nations throughout the world. If we agreed on defining the goals of the occupation's plans, it would be so simple to determine the means of confrontation.
One of our main conclusions which may rise to the level of challenge is to stress on what is required – to support the steadfastness and firmness of the Jerusalemites, the protectors of the sacred city, who, despite the dark image generated by the enormous and brutality of the occupation attack, will remain the ray of hope and the insurance of success and steadfastness given to the fact that they are the people of Jerusalem, the firebrand grippers in the Sacred Home and around the Sacred Home. They are also the people of the land of resurrection and gathering. Regardless of the attempts and the plans, Jerusalem will remain Arabic in heart, emotion, spirit and language. The people of Jerusalem will - hand in hand with the rest of their nation - challenge the impossible situations, living in their city, overcrowding and protecting Al Aqsa and the cities mosques and churches. When Israel threatens to withdraw the Jerusalemite non-residents' identities, thousands of them decided to return and some big families lived in small rooms to undermine the occupation plan.
I also would like to state that there are a number of detailed studies and projects which were conducted in different sectors during the past decades on what must be done to rescue Jerusalem. There are approved Palestinian mechanisms and highly professional and well-witnessed staff for their competency and transparency throughout all the international institutions who have the ability to implement any proposed projects. I also would like to point out that there have been decisions taken during the Arab summits, of which the last one was taken in the Second Serte Summit on the support for Jerusalem, but they were not implemented. Recently, we have agreed through the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which approved of the plan we already proposed for Jerusalem, to work hand in hand so that each one of the able Arab and Islamic states would support one of the our people's steadfastness sectors in Jerusalem, such as health, education, residence, infrastructure, culture, religious sites, trade, economy, … etc. Yesterday, when I met with the Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsan Oglu, we agreed on the plan and the implementation mechanism. Dr. Oglu will personally follow up the implementation of the plan which we hope it would turn into actions for the enhancement of our people in the sacred city of Jerusalem. In this occasion, I would like to thank the Islamic Bank for the projects it has funded to support our people in the city.
In this occasion, I would highly appreciate the clear vision and the proposed plans and actions stated in the "Jerusalem document" which was announced by the Grand Imam of Al Azhar Mosque a few days ago during the closing session of a conference held in Cairo and dedicated to Jerusalem for. In this respect, I would point to the report made by the EU Consuls on Jerusalem.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The core of any work we perform lies in the perception and establishment of Jerusalem as the center of the Palestinian question. Hence, we abide by our principal stand- not to resume negotiations as long as the occupation forces do not respect their commitments of settlement halt, mainly in Jerusalem.
From this point, we are required to work on various pivots, including:
The first pivot: the question of Jerusalem has to be the main heading and the basic core in the political and economic relationships between the Arab and Islamic states and the rest of the world. We are required to make up a unified action plan with the different Christian churches which concern about keeping the churches as homes of worship, not tourist sites, particularly because there are thousands of Christian believers who annually make pilgrimage visits to the Holy Land.
Accordingly, and from this stage, we confirm that the so-called "Jerusalem Annexation" law which was enacted on the 27th of June 1967 shall be deemed void … void … void! East Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Palestine.
The second pivot: Seeking the enhancement of the infrastructure for the people of Jerusalem through projects dedicated to support the institutions and other projects in the Holy City. We can here expand the participation scope to include the national institutions together with the Arab and Islamic governments. There are wide opportunities to establish twin relationships and partnerships between similar institutions in various educational, learning, economic, cultural and social sectors. There are also wide opportunities to make a quality difference through a series of small projects which could include a large number of Arab Muslims and Christians together in the desired effort. Here comes the vital role of the private sector businessmen from the Arab world.
The third pivot: this pivot has to do with the creation of a permanent state of communication with the people of Jerusalem to break the siege imposed on the city and its people. I would here point to the leading role by our brothers in the 1948 areas who constantly organize visits that include thousand of people and flock to the sacred city which is surrounded by settlement, the apartheid wall and the occupation's barriers, filling its mosques and helping thrive its markets to make its people feel they are not alone.
It is necessary then that we encourage whoever has the ability, particularly our brothers from the Arab and Islamic world, in addition to our Muslim and Christian brothers in Europe and America to visit Jerusalem. This move will have its political, emotional, economic and human impact. Jerusalem concerns and minds us all, and no one can prevent us from having access to it. Making crowds streaming towards it and making its streets and sacred sites busy will enhance the steadfastness of its people and this will contribute to protection and the establishment of the city's history and heritage under the threat of uproot target. This will remind the occupiers that the question of Jerusalem is every Arab's, Muslim's and Christian's. I would emphasize here that the prisoner visit is a kind of support for him, and it doesn't mean in anyway a type of normalization with the jailer.
We shall always remember the saying (Hadith) by the Prophet (peace be upon him):
"Do not set out on a journey except for three Mosques, i.e. Al-Masjid-AI-Haram, the Mosque of Allah's Apostle, and the Mosque of Al-Aqsa, (Mosque of Jerusalem)."
Al Aqsa Mosque was not then under the rule of Muslims, but it was under the Roman rule. The saying (Hadith) is generalized in all times and situations.
I ask the Arab brothers to support Jerusalem and its steadfast people. I quote from a saying by the Prophet (peace be upon him) when he was asked about Al Aqsa Mosque while he ordered to visit it and perform prayer, he said: "He who can't visit it should gift it with some oil to light its lambs." Material support to enhance the people's steadfastness may take the form of olive oil, fuel or anything else.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) came by night to the sacred home (Jerusalem) during the Isra and Mi'raj incident where he leads other prophets in prayer in Al Aqsa Mosque when it was under the Roman – not Muslim – rule.
Before that, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stayed years in Mecca, praying at Ka'aba while there were tens of idols. This wasn't an acknowledgement of the pagan legitimacy, but rather a confirmation of his legitimate right in Al Masjid Al Haram (the Sacred Mosque).
When he decided to visit Al Masjid Al Haram (the Sacred Mosque) following the Hijra (Mohammed's flight from Mecca to Medina in 622 AD), he was forced to get approval from Quraish disbelievers who were controlling over Mecca. Nobody dares to say that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had normalized relations with them. So, the prisoner visit is not normalization with the jailer as we said.
Then, has the visit to Jerusalem and Al Aqsa been outlawed by any Muslim jurist when they were under the Crusaders' rule?
And did Muslims stop visiting Jerusalem during the British mandate when the British High Commissioner used to live on the top of Jabal Al-Mukaber that towers over Al Aqsa Mosque, supervising and administering the Holy City?
Again, we confirm you that the prisoner visit doesn't mean normalization with the jailer.
His Highness
Mr. Secretary-لأeneral
Mr. Secretary-لأeneral
