Jerusalem: The Israeli authorities have banned Muslims from praying at Ibrahimi mosque on September 7 and September 8 in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron as people of the Jewish faith marked their new year, Wafaa News Agency reported.
For the second time in less than a week, Israeli authorities hindered Muslims from entering Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque.
The Israeli authorities closed the mosque to Muslim worshipers on September 2 and 3 on the occasion of the Jewish new year.
As per the media reports, the mosque was only opened for the Jewish community, who were allowed to perform Talmudic rituals under police protection. The director of the Ibrahimi Mosque, Sheikh Hafez Abu Sneina, told the local media, that Israeli forces prevented the Palestinians from reaching the holy site and its squares, as the “illegal settlers” prepared for the Jewish New Year.
It is believed that the mosque is the burial place of the prophets Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their wives and as such is considered sacred to both people of Muslims and Jewish faith. The mosque has been grounds for tension, especially as Israeli authorities took over the central prayer hall for use by illegal settlers.
The Jewish new year or Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the year according to the traditional Jewish calendar. In 2021, Rosh Hashanah starts at sunset on Monday, September 6, and will run through nightfall on Wednesday, September 8.