Azzam Al-Khatib, Director of the Jerusalem Waqf Department, said on Sunday that his department is responsible for the Al-Aqsa Mosque and does not consider itself subordinate to the Israeli authorities or its courts, but rather to the Jordanian Ministry of Endowments.
In an interview with Hamas' Felesteen newspaper, Khatib said that the entire area of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which covers 144 dunams, is not subject to Israeli laws, including the house of prayer at the Golden Gate.
That house of prayer, he added, remains open and the very presence of the "occupation" there is the real threat.
The bodies representing the Islamic leadership in Jerusalem recently stated that the Islamic house of prayer is an integral part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which belongs exclusively to Muslims by order of Allah and cannot be negotiated or relinquished.