Occupied Jerusalem-SANA
The Bab al-Amoud area in occupied Jerusalem is facing the threat of Judaization as a result of the open war waged by the Israeli occupation and its escalation of repression, intimidation and abuse against Jerusalemites for the fifth consecutive day.
The gate, which is one of the most important gates of Jerusalem, constitutes the northern entrance to the Old City and acquires strategic importance as the main entrance to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the Al-Buraq Wall. To bring about changes in the features of the region and its demographic composition, after it was a vital artery for the Jerusalemites.
With the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in 2000, the occupation severely restricted the movement of Palestinians in it, and in 2015 turned it into a military zone, and the Palestinians began calling Bab al-Amud (Martyrs’ Square) because dozens of martyrs were shot by the occupation in its square, which turned into one of the most prominent protest squares against the occupation and its crimes.
Bab al-Amud is no longer just an archaeological landmark of strategic importance, but has become a national symbol and a symbol of resistance against the occupation. The framework of his attempts to abolish the Palestinian presence in it and Judaize it.
Dozens of settlers carry out daily incursions into the Bab al-Amoud area under the protection of the occupation forces, which sent large reinforcements to the area last Sunday evening to provide protection for his Foreign Minister (Yair Lapid) during the storming of the Old City from the area where Palestinians used to gather in its square after performing Tarawih prayers in Al-Aqsa. On that day, dozens were injured and arrested.
The storming, which came three days after Israeli Knesset member (Itamar Ben Gvir) stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque and called on the settlers to intensify their incursions into Jerusalem, accompanied by repressive measures to tighten the screws on the Palestinians, as the occupation authorities closed 28 Palestinian institutions, associations and bodies operating in Jerusalem since the beginning This month, led by the Orient House and the Prisoner's Club, in addition to placing more military checkpoints near Bab al-Amud to prevent Palestinians from reaching the assembly square.
Muhammad Ghaith, one of the residents of the area, indicated in a statement carried by Wafa Agency that they are experiencing a real catastrophe, as the occupation forces attack every Palestinian in Bab al-Amud. In 2017, in the vicinity of Al-Bab to monitor the Palestinians and follow their movements.
For his part, Palestinian researcher Jamal Amro explained that during the holy month of Ramadan, Jerusalemites used to gather before the Maghrib call to prayer until dawn in Bab Al-Amoud Square and its terraces, emphasizing the Arab identity of the place, indicating that the occupation realizes the symbolic and historical importance of Al-Bab, and this is why it escalates its repressive practices and its arbitrary measures and tries to prevent Palestinians from reaching it. its yard, but they assure that they will fail what the occupation seeks, and the door will remain a symbol of steadfastness
and resistance.
Human rights researcher Hussein Hammad pointed out that the name Bab al-Amoud rose to the fore in December 2017, after former US President Donald Trump declared occupied Jerusalem the capital of the occupation entity, as it turned into the center of Palestinian protests in Jerusalem against the decision, and its stands witness many protests against the demolition of homes And in solidarity with the prisoners in the occupation prisons, or in commemoration of the Nakba, the 1967 aggression, Land Day, and other national events.
In turn, the Supreme Committee for Churches Affairs in occupied Palestine warned of the repercussions of the violations of the occupation forces and settlers and their continuous attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and the neighborhoods of the occupied city of Jerusalem, noting that the occupation deliberately escalates its measures during the month of Ramadan of brutal repression and abuse against the Palestinians in Jerusalem, especially in the Bab Al-Amoud area and the Al-Aqsa area. It provides protection for hundreds of settlers to storm the mosque and make provocative tours of its courtyards.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed in a statement that the occupation is waging an open war on the Palestinian presence in Jerusalem to implement the colonial annexation plans, indicating that the occupation’s practices and repressive measures against Jerusalemites in the town of Silwan and the Bab al-Amoud area in the Old City fall within the framework of its attempts to Judaize Jerusalem and control its Christian and Islamic holy sites, which calls for action Internationally urgently to stop the crimes of the occupation and its continuing violations.
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