The head of the Al-Aqsa Academy for Endowments and Heritage, Sheikh Najeh Bakirat, warned on Saturday of the repercussions of the occupation continuing to procrastinate in returning the dome and crescent of the minaret of the historic Jerusalem Citadel Mosque, which it recently removed, under the pretext of carrying out restoration work on the minaret.

Bakirat said that the occupation authorities are delaying the return of the dome and crescent of the minaret of the Jerusalem Citadel, and are seeking to obliterate and falsify its features and identity, and to Judaize it under the guise of “restoration.”

He added, “For six months, we have been following the issue of the minaret and monitoring what is happening inside the citadel. We submitted an objection to the so-called Israeli Antiquities Authority and those in charge of its management, and demanded the need to return the dome and the crescent to its place, as it is a witness to the Arab identity of Jerusalem, and is considered one of the most beautiful minarets in the city.”

He pointed out that he recently launched a campaign under the title “Restore the Jerusalem Citadel its Crescent,” and is still continuing his efforts to return it to its place.

He stressed that the occupation authorities are working to obliterate Jerusalem's landmarks, its minarets, its historical lighthouses, its Islamic and Arab cemeteries, its history and its Palestinian identity, in an attempt to erase and obliterate the lofty architectural presence in the occupied city.

He continued, "We will not remain silent about what the occupation is doing against the Jerusalem Citadel, and we will not accept the obliteration and Judaization of the minarets, the assault on the graves and the breaking of their headstones. We will continue to resist and confront the Judaization plans against Islamic monuments and monuments, and even restore the Jerusalem minaret as it was."

Bakirat sent a message to the occupation, saying: “Restore the citadel’s crescent. Enough of your futility and violation of our minarets, mosques, and cemeteries. For six months, you have been saying that you are carrying out restoration work, and you are procrastinating in returning it. We will not remain silent about that, and we will work to restore it again.”

In a message to the Jerusalemite community, Bakirat said: “Your eyes must remain on your mosques, cemeteries, your holy city and its mosques, especially the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is subject to continuous Israeli attacks and incursions.”

He added, "You must remain firmly within Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa, and bear your responsibilities in order to protect them from the occupation's attacks and its attempt to Judaize the city, the Blessed Mosque, and their Islamic and historical landmarks."

He also sent a message to the Arab and Islamic incubator, saying: “Aren’t these minarets your minarets, and also the mosques, and that Jerusalem is the incubator of the Islamic world, you must take urgent and serious action to protect it and support Al-Aqsa.”

The head of Al-Aqsa Academy for Endowment and Heritage stressed that we reject Israeli tampering with any Jerusalem landmark and lighthouse, whether Islamic or Christian, in Jerusalem.

The historic minaret is located in the southwestern corner of the majestic Jerusalem Citadel. It was established by the Mamluk Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun in 1310, and restored by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1532 AD, then renewed in 1655, during the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Muhammad IV.

Last June, the so-called “Jerusalem History Museum” erected iron scaffolding around the minaret, claiming that it was carrying out restoration work on the minaret, which is the highest in the Old City.

The minaret consists of three stone floors, the first of which forms its square base, above which stands the second floor, which is cylindrical in shape, and then the third floor, which is smaller in size than the second floor, and in the middle of which is a small building, which forms the cap of the minaret.

After the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967, the castle fell into the hands of the occupation, and extensive excavations began, including the destruction of part of it and a large number of its ancient Islamic antiquities.

In 1980, he transformed it and its mosque into a Judaism museum called the “Castle of David Museum,” which tells the story of the alleged “Temple,” and the history of Jerusalem is presented, via the latest electronic means, from an Israeli ideological point of view.

The minaret, in which it is forbidden to raise the call to prayer, acquires a great symbolic status that no one can ignore. Even the administration of the museum inside the castle indicates in the museum’s introductory brochure that the castle “through its lofty minaret is a symbol of nostalgia and longing for this holy city... In this place, life has continued for thousands of years.”