Will Palestinians thwart Reform Kotel plaza?

The religious leadership of the Palestinian Authority (PA) has expressed fierce opposition to the new decision of the Israeli government to expand the non-Orthodox mixed prayer section of the Western Wall (Kotel).

 

PA Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Hussein reissued claims that the Kotel is a Muslim site belonging to the Islamic Waqf, referring to it as “Al-Buraq” Wall, a name given by Muslims to the Kotel in the 1920s in an attempt to claim it. The name refers to Mohammed’s “winged steed” he supposedly rode to Jerusalem in his “night journey.”

 

Joining his call was Sheikh Ekrima Sabri, head of the Supreme Muslim Council, who said, “the ground allocated by the occupation for prayer is Islamic Waqf land, and the assault on it is considered an assault on the rights of Muslims and Arabs.”

 

Read More: Will Palestinians thwart Reform Kotel plaza? – Middle East – News – Arutz Sheva