Israeli occupation authorities have begun implementing aproject aimed at Judaization of the Ibrahimi Mosque in Al-Khalil (Hebron).
The project includes building corridors and the installation of an elevator to facilitate access for Zionist settlers.
Israeli occupation soldiers aim to seize approximately 300 square meters of the mosque’s courtyards and facilities, with two million shekels ($0.62 million) having been allocated to fund the project so far, reported Arab48.
Last May, then Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett issued an expropriation order for a portion of the Ibrahimi Mosque as part of a project to build an elevator to facilitate settlers’ access to the Muslim house of worship.
The municipality of Al-Khalil has been demanding that the project be stopped because the construction will be on land it owns together with the Palestinian Waqf (Religious Endowment) Islamic Trust. However, Israeli Supreme Court rejected a petition filed by Al-Khalil Municipality earlier this year in March.
The Israeli plan to seize the Ibrahimi Mosque goes against international laws. In 2017, UNESCO included the Ibrahimi Mosque and the Old City of Al-Khalil as a Palestinian heritage site.
The Judaization project is being operated by the Engineering and Construction Department of the Israeli Ministry of Security under the supervision of the Israeli civil administration, which is expected to last about six months.
All of Israeli settlements and settlers are on Palestinian land illegally according to international law.
Source: Middle East Monitor
