IDF Harasses Singaporeans visiting Al Aqsa Mosque
The Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jeursalem holds a sacred place in Islam. It is regarded by Muslims as the third holiest site in Islam, just after Mecca and Medina.
Due to its significance, it is the dream of Muslims around the world to visit and pray in the mosque in their lifetime.
Azee, a Singaporean freelance wedding photographer, shared with Wake Up Singapore about his experience with the IDF guards that control the entry to Al-Aqsa Mosque.
“Due to the current situation in Palestine, my wife and I decided that visiting and showing our support to Palestine would be the best “holiday” trip for us.
However, we were unsure if the trip was safe for our kids as we wouldnt want to go on this “holiday” which would be filled with knowledge on our Prophets and history of Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem without them. Not until we stumbled upon ig posts by @sparkpistol who went to this trip before us in Dec 2023.
He went with his pregnant wife, and infant and 2 small girls under 7 yr old and other jemaah, under Al-Qaswa travel and tours too.
The itinerary was very well planned with lots of places of interest, maqams and masjids (including Masjid Al-Qibli and Qubbatus Sakhra etc.). With a good guide, Ustaz Azmi from Palestine, arranged by Al-Qaswa, we gained alot of beneficial knowledge. In between, there were shopping and free and easy moment too. Some parts of the itinerary was tweaked for our safety and convenience. A trip to remembered forever” – Azee Jazzy
He went there with his family of 5 (including 3 daughters aged 7, 5, and 1) a group of Singaporeans under the Al Qawsa Travel and Tour group from 2 to 9 June 2024.
What Happened?
“On the 4th June, a group of us want to enter the gate which was block by the IDF . Usually when we shown our Singapore passport we will easily go in.. (Palestinian has no free access in . IDF see mood if they allowed them to in or not) but on that day, all of us include Palestinian not allowed to be in. We just want to go inside to pray.” – Azee, a Singaporean who wanted to visit and pray in Al-Aqsa Mosque
Documenting his experience, Azee told Wake Up Singapore how they were refused entry, given misleading directions, and harassed.
On one occasion on 4 June, they were blocked from entering the mosque compound by IDF guards.
The guards who blocked them directed them to another gate, which was also locked. Sometimes, they were refused entry and asked to go to another gate which can be 400 to 800 meters away.
The Flag March on Jerusalem Day
The evening of 4th June to 5th June is considered by Israelis as Jerusalem Day, which marks the conclusion of the 1967 war and the start of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which is found to be illegal by the UN.
On Jerusalem Day, Israelis practice what is known as a Flag March, where demonstrators dance and wave Israeli flags throughout the city. Every year, Palestinians in Occupied East Jerusalem brace against racial violence and insults as the march storms through the area.
Palestinian journalist Saif Al-Qawasmi, who was covering the march, was attacked by a large group of Israeli young men and teenagers in the Al-Aqsa compound that day. Footage from local journalists showed young men and teenagers chanting racial slurs and “May your village burn” at Palestinians in their homes and businesses as they marched through occupied East Jerusalem.
The IDF asked a Singaporean Woman to recite the Al-Fateha verse from the Quran
On another occasion when Azee and the group tried to enter the Mosque, as seen in the screengrab and video appended below, a IDF soldier touched a woman on her shoulder.
According to Azee, she was also taken aside by the IDF soldiers and asked to recite a verse from the Quran called the Al-Fateha.
On a separate occasion, a member’s bracelet bearing the word ‘Palestine’ and the flag, was confiscated by IDF soldiers.
Azee expressed that these repeated frustrations and obstacles in trying to peacefully practice their faith in Jerusalem gave them a glimpse into the daily lives of Palestinians under Israeli occupation.
Nothing compared to the hardship of Palestinians
Another member of the tour that Azee was on shared that what they faced “does not come close to what the Palestinians face daily under the apartheid regime.”
Azee’s videos may be viewed in full at this link.
@azeejengjengjeng فَإِنَّ مَعَ ٱلْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا ٥ So, surely with hardship comes ease #fyp #muslim #islam #mosque #jerusalem #solat #fajr #subuh #solatsubuhmacamjumaat
Azee also compiled a video of the entire tour on his Youtube Channel.
Azee had high praise for Al-Qaswa’s handling of the tour and service:-
From the day we signed up to taklimat (briefing) day to the end of the trip, Kak Fauziah has been an understanding, supportive, caring, knowledgeable, organized, professional and firm leader to the jemaah. Together with Ustaz Eqbal, we realized this duo actually have many years of experiences in bringing jemaah to Baitulmaqdis. Among the jemaah they have brought were young children. Hence, that confidence they gave us thruout the trip was contagious. Naturally, my wife and I felt confident in guiding our little juniors there. Having a caring and gerek group of jemaah with us during the trip was a bonus. I guess these attributes in the other jemaah were, naturally, reflections of Kak Fauziah and Ustaz Eqbal’s positive character.
The leaders and whole jemaah group helped us ALOT thruout the trip since they knew that wasnt easy for us to carry 5 luggages with small children in tow. Kak Fauziah, Ustaz Eqbal and other jemaah even carried, pacified and treated our children like their own. They were so approachable that our kids were easy to be with them when we were busy with our ibadah. Alhamdulillah.
The itinerary was very well planned with lots of places of interest, maqams and masjids (including Masjid Al-Qibli and Qubbatus Sakhra etc.). With a good guide, Ustaz Azmi from 🇵🇸, arranged by Al-Qaswa, we gained alot of beneficial knowledge. MasyaAllah. In between, there were shopping and free and easy moment too. Some parts of the itinerary was tweaked for our safety and convenience. We were all updated on the changes thru our groupchats. With kids in tow, i am really grateful for these changes as safety and ensuring they are not so overwhelmed and over-tired by the trip were my priorities.
More from Wake Up Singapore:-
‘Palestine, We See You’ – Yale-NUS Students show solidarity with Palestine during convocation
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