Amid restrictions and procedures – celebrating Laylat al-Qadr in Al-Aqsa

Jerusalem - Together - Hundreds of thousands of Muslims celebrated the night of the twentieth of the month of Ramadan, 'Laylat Al-Qadr' in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. Al-Aqsa was filled with all its prayer halls, courtyards, and corridors with worshippers, in a scene that had been absent for nearly 5 months after a strict siege and the isolation of Al-Aqsa since the war on the Gaza Strip. The employees of the Islamic Endowments Department and the regime's teams organized the prayer areas for men and women, allocated paths for walking through Al-Aqsa, and organized entry and exit to it in light of the overcrowding that occurred at its gates. The occupation forces deployed in the roads leading to Al-Aqsa, and at its gates and the gates of the Old City, and erected barriers and iron barricades, and launched drones in the sky of the city to photograph and monitor the movement of those arriving to Al-Aqsa. The Islamic Endowments Department estimated the number of worshipers who performed the Isha and Tarawih p rayers at Al-Aqsa at 200,000. The imams of Al-Aqsa Mosque took turns performing the evening, Tarawih, and Witr prayers, and Sheikh Youssef Abu Sneina, the imam and preacher of the mosque, concluded the Witr prayer by praying for the people of the Gaza Strip, Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the prisoners. After completing the Witr prayer, the dhikr circles, the reading of the Qur'an, and religious lessons began in all the squares of Al-Aqsa and the tents of those in retreat, and the night prayer was held in the mosque. Worshipers at Al-Aqsa The large numbers of worshipers on this night were from the people of the Palestinian interior, as hundreds of buses and private vehicles traveled to transport the worshipers to Al-Aqsa, from the people of Jerusalem. As for the people of the West Bank, their numbers were very small this year due to the restrictions and 'coordinator's permit' procedures for entering Jerusalem. Large numbers of Muslims were at Al-Aqsa to commemorate Laylat Al-Qadr. A family from Tuba in the 'Palesti nian interior' set out for Al-Aqsa to perform the Maghrib and Isha prayers there and celebrate Laylat Al-Qadr. The family explained that they left their home around three o'clock in the afternoon and arrived at six o'clock, confirming that they take advantage of the month of Ramadan and other days of the year to arrive and pray in The Blessed Al-Aqsa... it has psychological comfort and a blessed place.' As for Hajja Fatima and her husband from the city of Ramallah, they began checking the 'coordinator's platform' to ensure the accuracy of the talk about renewing the 'permit for ten o'clock on Saturday morning.' She said: 'For hours, we have been examining whether the permit period has been extended, but unfortunately there is no truth to what was mentioned. We will leave now.' Al-Aqsa and we were not able to celebrate Laylat al-Qadr. We only prayed Tarawih prayers there. These are procedures and laws that we are committed to applying to obtain permits in the coming days. Young Ahmed from the city of Jerusal em said: 'The crowding at the gates of Al-Aqsa and in the roads of the Old City has not been witnessed for months, so the siege was great on Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa, and we hope that all the people of Palestine will be able to arrive and pray at Al-Aqsa without any restrictions and conditions. Demonstration in Al-Aqsa A demonstration was launched in Al-Aqsa Mosque after the completion of Tarawih prayers, and chants were chanted for the Gaza Strip and for Al-Aqsa. Young men and boys were arrested at the gates of Al-Aqsa, and some were severely beaten. It is noteworthy that arrests from Al-Aqsa and its surroundings have continued since last Wednesday. Source: Maan News Agency