The march, which has stirred controversy, is intended to commemorate the occupation and subsequent annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967 [Mahmoud Illean/AP Photo]
The Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority has denounced the annual Israeli flag march in occupied East Jerusalem as a “absurd and provocative” endeavor to impose “false facts” on the region.
On Thursday, Mohammed Shtayyeh issued a statement denouncing the flag parade, an event where tens of thousands of Israeli settlers march through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City.
According to Shtayyeh, the parade does not legitimize the Israeli occupation, given its “absurd policies and repressive practices.”
“It cannot change the features of the Holy City with its Palestinian Jerusalemite residents, its Islamic and Christian sanctities, and its landmarks that reject the occupiers who come to it,” he said.
The march in question is intended to commemorate the occupation and annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967, a controversial action that has yet to receive recognition from the global community.
The use of anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian slogans is a well-known phenomenon in certain circles in Israel. Ultra-nationalist Israelis have been observed chanting phrases such as “Death to Arabs” and “May your village burn,” which are believed to reference the Nakba, a historical event that saw the forced displacement of Palestinians in 1948 and the subsequent establishment of Israel.
Shtayyeh says, the Palestinian people possess the capability to foil any efforts aimed at Judaisation. This term pertains to Israel’s strategy of modifying the physical and demographic structure of Jerusalem to bolster its Jewish identity, while simultaneously eradicating the Palestinian presence.
He added that the Palestinians will persist in opposing the policies of the occupying forces, regardless of the cost.
Provocative tours of Al-Aqsa compound
Israeli authorities have recently intensified their military measures in Jerusalem, prohibiting Palestinian worshippers under the age of 50 from accessing Al-Aqsa Mosque for dawn prayers.
Throughout the morning, authorities granted permission for a multitude of Jewish settlers, including government officials and members of the Israeli Knesset with far-right affiliations, to forcefully enter the site in question.
According to a report by the Islamic Waqf Council, a religious entity designated by Jordan to supervise the Al-Aqsa compound, settlers recently conducted inciting tours of the compound and conducted Talmudic ceremonies in the vicinity of the Dome of the Rock mosque. The settlers subsequently departed from the Bab al-Silsila, also known as the Chain Gate.
Palestinian youth residing in Israel and the occupied territories of Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip have initiated a campaign to hoist the Palestinian flag in the principal squares of diverse towns and cities, synchronizing with the Israeli flag parade.
Abd al-Latif al-Qanou, a Hamas spokesperson stated that the conflict between the Palestinian people and the Zionist occupation regarding the identity of the revered Al-Aqsa Mosque remains unresolved and ongoing. This statement was made during an interview with Al Jazeera.
“We will not allow the Israeli occupation to pass a plan to extend its sovereignty or impose its control over Al-Aqsa Mosque, through facilitating the march of the settler flags or the repeated incursions into it,” he said.