AL-AQSA IN DANGER!

While the world is all agog over the Hizbullah victory in the "Israel"-Lebanon war, Zionist oppression of Al-Aqsa in the holy land of Jerusalem is going on unnoticed. While the world is fascinated by Hizbullah's triumph, and its current status as the hero of Lebanon, Al-Aqsa is disregarded. Aid is being channelled to Lebanon whilst Al-Aqsa struggles under constant Zionist aggression.

Al-Aqsa is still being violated by the Zionist regime. The situation in Jerusalem is deteriorating by the day. The humiliation and indecent treatment which the Palestinians have been experiencing in their own land is worsening. Until now, Palestinians are still being barred from performing Friday prayers in the mosque for several months running.

Our real responsibility is to defend Al-Aqsa based on its special status as the first qiblah. Our soldiers should be sent to Jerusalem to defend the holy sanctuary. The safety of the mosque should be our main concern.

As Muslims, we should familiarise ourselves with the steps the Zionists have taken to occupy Al-Aqsa and realise their ambition to build their Jewish temple, the Haykal of Solomon.

STEP 1: ANNEXING AL-BURAQ WALL

On August 20th 1929, a group of extremist Jews, with the help of the British army, broke through into the Al-Aqsa complex and took control of the western area, including Al-Buraq Wall (now referred to as the Wailing Wall by the Jews). In just 15 days, 338 Palestinians died in their effort to thwart the Zionists' plan.

STEP 2: ARSON OF THE MOSQUE

On August 21st 1969, an extremist Jew called Dr Dennis Michael Rohan (Jewish name: Mikhail Rohan) set Al-Aqsa on fire. The fire destroyed most of the mosque, including the historical minbar (pulpit), used by Salahuddin al-Ayyubi after he liberated Al-Aqsa from the Christian Crusaders. The Palestinians succeeded in extinguishing the fire, but Dr Rohan was freed from all charges on grounds of insanity.

STEP 3: LAYING THE FOUNDATION

On October 15th 1989, the "Guardians of the Temple" group laid the foundation for the Haykal. A spokesperson noted that this move constituted the beginning of Jewish renaissance.

STEP 4: JUDAISATION OF THE MOSQUE

Since 1967, various plans have been carried out by extremist Jews to replace Al-Aqsa with their Haykal. Temple guards were trained, special Kohannim robes for the rabbis were sewn, and even a model of the temple was built near Al-Aqsa. Ehud Olmert, former mayor of Jerusalem (now Prime Minister of "Israel") also officiated at the opening of the Jewish Museum, built underneath Al-Aqsa Mosque.

STEP 5: DIGGING THE TUNNEL

After laying the foundation, the Zionists started excavation works. Their tunnel underneath the mosque reached the length of 400 metres (half the length of Al-Aqsa), thus damaging the structure. Sheikh Raed Solah, the leader of the Islamic movement in Jerusalem who exposed this fact to the public was imprisoned by the Zionist regime.

STEP 6: EXPANDING THE GEOGRAPHY OF "ISRAEL"

After the declaration of "The Greater Jerusalem" in 1982 that was approved by the Knesset ("Israeli" parliament), the Zionist regime endeavoured to expand the geography of Al-Quds to 279 donums. They succeeded in doing so by including 49 Jewish towns and villages in Jerusalem and expanding the demography of Jews in Palestine. 70% of Palestinian land was confiscated and only 13% left to the original owners.

STEP 7: EVICTING THE PALESTINIANS

Since 1967, more than 435 Palestinian families have had their houses demolished and 700,000 of the people were driven out of their homes. 50,000 were exiled; they were not allowed to re-enter Palestine after they furthered their studies or sought medical attention abroad. As a result, before the construction of the segregatory West Bank Wall, there were only 70,000 Palestinians left in "Israel" while the number of Jews reached 400,000. After the wall was built, the number of Jews in "Israel" rose even more rapidly.

STEP 8: OCCUPYING THE MOSQUE

In 1967, the Zionist army under the command of General Mordechai entered Haram As-Sharif in tanks. The army seized the key of Al-Magharibah Gate and took control of the city's east side, including Al-Aqsa Mosque.

STEP 9: KILLING THE PALESTINIANS

In the Deir Yassin incident, 254 Palestinians were murdered. This number includes 145 women, 35 of which were pregnant. 150 corpses were flung into disused wells. 150 women were paraded around the city while naked, and the Jews spat on them. Jewish tyranny over Palestinians has never stopped; the brutality and injustice have been going on for decades and continues every single day.

AL-AQSA MOSQUE IN OUR HEARTS

Palestine is extremely special to Muslims because:

• Al-Aqsa Mosque is located there. Al-Aqsa was the first qiblah, the second mosque to be built and the third holiest mosque in Islam.
• It is the land of the prophets; Ibrahim, Daud, Musa, Zakaria and 'Isa a.s. amongst them.
• Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. travelled to Jerusalem during the miraculous Isra' Mi'raj journey, and ascended to Heaven from Al-Aqsa.
• Prophet 'Isa a.s. will descend there during the Day of Judgement.
• Allah called Jerusalem and its land "the blessed surroundings".
• 'Umar al-Khattab, the second caliph, declared the region to be part of Islamic waqf (endowment).

"Glory be to the One who took His servant on a journey by night from Al-Masjid Al-Haram in Makkah to Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa, whose precincts We have blessed..." (Al-Israa' 17: 1)

WHAT CAN WE DO?

Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. said, "Whoever dies without having striven for the cause of Allah or having had the intention of doing so, has died following one of the branches of hypocrisy." (reported by Muslim)

There are many steps we can undertake to show solidarity with our brothers and sisters and to protest the unjust occupation of their land. The main thing is for us to propagate the cause by denouncing the oppression, and to use all available resources to help the suffering Palestinians morally and financially.

• Pray for the safety and well-being of our Palestinians brothers and sisters, and implore Allah to grant the fighters victory over their enemies.
• Recite Qunut An-Nazilah, a kind of special prayer recommended in time of calamities and tragedies.
• Finance the institution of Jihad and those who fight in Allah��s cause by donating to the Palestinian people and Al-Aqsa Mosque through trustworthy channels.
• Support the weak and the oppressed in all ways, including the media as well as the Internet.
• Get scholars, du'at, Imams as well as Muslim writers to explain the oppression that is happening to the fellow Muslims and the negligence on the part of the ummah, and to mobilise the ummah to defend the holy land.
• Boycott the products of the "Israelis" and their proxies, as well as condemning their atrocities and barbarism.
• Write letters of support for the Palestinian cause to our local media, members of the Parliament, the United Nations and various other national/internatio nal agencies.
• Support the Islamic organisations all over the world which are staging peaceful demonstrations or making petitions.
• Increase our own knowledge about the Palestinian issue.

Basically, we should spread the word through any means possible, for example by distributing pamphlets; writing articles; organising exhibitions, "Save Al-Aqsa" campaigns, talks on Palestine and fundraising concerts; composing songs and lyrics; circulating solidarity for Palestine postcards; screening documentaries; writing short stories and novels; giving talk shows on the TV and radio; writing scripts for dramas and films and a variety of other ways.

BOYCOTT!

Boycotting "Israeli" and American products is a religious obligation as well as a necessary human procedure to repel the aggressors, and it is a basic form of Jihad ( i.e. economic Jihad). Boycotting has a very negative effect on the economy of the enemy just as it will help in pushing forward the wheel of national economy in the long run.

Dr. Hussein Shihata, Professor of Islamic economy at the Faculty of Commerce, Al-Azhar University opines that the economic boycott is a religious obligation; Muslim jurists have also agreed that it is a necessity. Therefore, economic Jihad is given the same legal ruling as physical Jihad in its broadest sense.

Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. stressed the significance of economic Jihad, saying, "Whoever helps a fighter in the cause of Allah is given the same reward as the fighter, and whoever takes care of his family (the fighter) is given a similar reward." (reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

In this regard Sheikh Yusuf al-Qardhawi says, "To buy ("Israeli" and American) goods is to support tyranny, oppression and aggression. Buying goods from them will strengthen them; our duty is to make them as weak as we can. Our obligation is to strengthen our resisting brothers in the Sacred Land as much as we can. If we cannot strengthen the brothers, we have a duty to make the enemy weak. If their weakness cannot be achieved except by boycott, we must boycott them."

He goes on to state, "It is a legal obligation upon all Muslims to boycott Israel and all countries that support it, especially the United States of America for each dirham or dinar that reaches them turns to a bullet used in shooting our brothers in Palestine."

As long as we go on buying their products, the Zionists will continue committing all sorts of atrocities on our brothers and sisters in Palestine. Palestine will be bombed, houses will be demolished and Palestinians killed with the bullets we have bought. Therefore, Muslims should stop buying and supporting products that are known to aid "Israel" and America. Our buying power can paralyse the "Israeli" economy and bring peace back to Palestine.

LIBERATING AL-AQSA IS A SACRED AND NOBLE DUTY

Freeing Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem is a very noble task, the striving towards and achievement of which will be handsomely rewarded by Allah s.w.t. In a hadith narrated by Abu Umamah al-Bahili, Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. said:

"There will be a group from my ummah that will be always be on the true and righteous path. They will overcome their enemies and they will not be transgressed against unless suffering befalls them, until Allah's help comes and they return to their normal state. The companions asked: Where do they live, oh Rasulullah s.a.w.? The Prophet replied: In Jerusalem and the surrounding areas." (reported by Ahmad)

Allah s.w.t. has chosen the Palestinian people to be the ones to protect Al-Aqsa. They have sacrificed everything, including their lives, wealth, family, children and their whole world in order to defend our holy land. They have given everything for their Lord and when they meet Him, their responsibility will have been fulfilled.

The question is, what have WE contributed to Al-Aqsa? Defending Al-Aqsa is an obligation, so is it enough for us to just look on while our brothers and sisters suffer? What will we answer in front of our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?

Hopefully our small but consistent contributions will save us in the Hereafter. Don't hesitate, start helping now!

Safwan and Zaid Omar

11 September 2006