Egypt’s Al-Azhar Warns of A Repeat of Ibrahimi Mosque Massacre at Al-Aqsa
In a statement released on the 28th anniversary of the massacre, the observatory also cautioned the Zionist regime against implementation of plans for temporal and spatial division of Al-Aqsa Mosque, Arabi21.com reported.
It reiterated that the Ibrahimi Mosque in its entirety is a purely Islamic place of worship, and that the Israeli occupation of it, no matter how long it takes and no matter how brutal it is, will not change that fact.
The observatory also called on international media to expose the Zionist regime’s terrorist acts and its ominous plots to destroy Palestinians’ religious and cultural heritage.
It said the Zionist regime is looking for pretexts to repeat the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre at Al-Aqsa.
It added that the Tel Aviv regime’s measures in Jerusalem Al-Quds, especially the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, and its continued support for illegal settlers’ attacks on Islamic sanctities are alarming.
Twenty-eight years ago, on February 25, 1994, an Israeli settler named Baruch Goldstein shot at hundreds of Palestinians gathering for Al-Fajr prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque in the occupied city of Hebron (al-Khalil).
Goldstein took advantage of the gathering of the worshippers in the prostration position and the closure of the mosque's doors by the occupation soldiers, to kill 29 Palestinians and wound more than 150 others.
The massacre did not end until the Israeli forces shot at the attendees of the victims' funeral, raising the death toll of the massacre to 60.
Despite the atrocity of the massacre, it was widely supported by the Israeli occupation and settlers. When asked if he felt sorry for those killed by Goldstein, Jewish Rabbi Moshe Levinger remarked, “The death of an Arab makes me feel sorry as much as I pity the death of a fly”
Goldstein is considered a saint by Israeli authorities, who transformed his grave into a shrine and assigned a number of honor guards to perform the military salute every day before his grave.
The Arab and Muslim countries were outraged and condemned the criminal attack via peaceful demonstrations, demanding an end to the Israeli settlements and the prosecution of the occupation for its repeated crimes. However, the Israeli authorities argued that Goldstein was insane and was receiving treatment, making it legally impossible to hold him responsible for his actions. This is how the occupation managed to escape the legal responsibility for this crime.
Despite the attempts of Israeli media to mislead the public about what really happened during the massacre, the United Nations (UN) Security Council approved, on 18 March, 1994, a resolution condemning the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre, and called on the Israeli authorities to take measures to protect the Palestinians, including the disarming of settlers.
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