Al-Aqsa Mosque
Umrah diary: Crossing into Jerusalem, looking Muslim
By Dilshad Ali — January 24, 2024
(RNS) — Making a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia with two of our kids, we stopped to pray at the third-holiest site in Islam.
Why Hamas is selling its assault on Israel as a holy war
By Michele Chabin and Yonat Shimron — October 17, 2023
(RNS) — The reference to Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, was a rallying cry to unite Muslims everywhere.
Why Al-Aqsa remains a sensitive site in Palestine-Israel conflict
By Ken Chitwood — October 10, 2023
(The Conversation) — The Al-Aqsa mosque, a flashpoint in Hamas’ recent assault against Israel, hosts daily prayers and Friday gatherings. It lies adjacent to important Jewish and Christian religious locales.
How we got to the ‘Al-Aqsa tsunami’
By Daoud Kuttab — October 7, 2023
(RNS) — Ramping up religious fanaticism for political ends always ends badly.
Citing Al-Aqsa Mosque, Hamas launches broad attack as Israelis celebrate Simchat Torah
By Josef Federman and Issam Adwan — October 7, 2023
JERUSALEM (AP) — Under cover of a barrage of rockets, dozens of Hamas militants broke out of the blockaded Gaza Strip and into nearby Israeli towns, killing hundreds and abducting others in an early morning attack during a major Jewish holiday Saturday.
The Muslim prayer hall that may spark the next Israeli-Palestinian battle
By Daoud Kuttab — May 4, 2023
(RNS) — In Jerusalem, small frictions can escalate quickly if the causes are not addressed.
After unrest at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Israel curtails freedom of worship for Christians
By Daoud Kuttab — April 13, 2023
(RNS) — Negotiations between church officials and the Israeli police have broken down.
Church: Israel limiting rights of ‘Holy Fire’ worshippers
By Laurie Kellman and Audrey Horowitz — April 12, 2023
JERUSALEM (AP) — The chief superintendent of the Jerusalem District Police told reporters that the police's top priority is safety on a day when Muslims, Christians and Jews are celebrating their own holidays in the square-kilometer (square-half mile) Old City.
Tensions build around Jerusalem shrine after Syria rockets
By Ilan Ben Zion — April 10, 2023
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli warplanes and artillery struck targets in Syria following rare rocket fire from the northeastern neighbor, as Jewish-Muslim tensions reached a peak Sunday at a volatile Jerusalem shrine with simultaneous religious rituals.
Francis focuses Easter message on hope, with prayers for an end to global conflicts
By Junno Arocho Esteves — April 9, 2023
ROME (RNS) — The proclamation that Christ is 'truly risen' is a reminder that 'our hope is not an illusion, but the truth,' the pope said.
Rocket fire from Gaza, Lebanon at Israel as Passover begins
By Sam McNeil — April 7, 2023
JERUSALEM (AP) — Militants fired rockets from Gaza and Lebanon toward Israel on Thursday, following confrontations between Israeli police and Palestinian worshippers at a major Muslim shrine in Jerusalem for a second day in a row.
When Ramadan means an escalation of Israeli occupation violence
By Omar Suleiman — April 5, 2023
(RNS) — To end the now annual attacks on Muslims during Ramadan, we must end the Israeli occupation.
Violence erupts at Jerusalem holy site for a 2nd night
By Isabel Debre and Fares Akram — April 5, 2023
(AP) — Since Ramadan began March 22, scores of Muslim worshippers have repeatedly tried to stay overnight in the mosque, a practice that is typically permitted only during the last 10 days of the monthlong holiday.
The dangerous week ahead in the Old City of Jerusalem
By Daoud Kuttab — April 4, 2023
(RNS) — Jerusalem is on edge as radical Jewish activists push to hold a ritual where Muslims gather for Ramadan.
Why a visit by Israel’s national security minister to Al-Aqsa Mosque caused a firestorm
By Daoud Kuttab — January 6, 2023
(RNS) — Israel must decide whether its future will be as a modern democracy or a theocracy.
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