(¯`(¯`·.Palestinian Space.·´¯)´¯)

History of Palestine Palestine was predestined by God Almighty to be the land from which prophets and messengers took upon their shoulders the banner of monotheism and called upon their people to abide by it. In its ancient history, Palestine witnessed models of leadership by many prophets and their subsequent command over their people. These prophets waged violent struggles for the sake of fixing the banner of truth on this holy land. It is important to keep in mind the fact that Muslims do believe in all prophets, that Muslims consider the heritage of all prophets as their own, that Muslims consider their Islamic creed as an extension of the creed of the prophets prior to the coming of Islam and that the creed for which all prophets previous to Mohammed had called for is the same creed for which prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings be upon him) had called.The geography of Palestine Palestine constitutes the southwestern part of a huge geographical unity in the eastern part of the Arab world, which is Belad El-Sham. In addition to Palestine, Sham contains Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. It used to have common borders with these countries, in addition to Egypt. The borders of Palestine start with Lebanon at Ras El-Nakoura at the Mediterranean sea and head in a straight line to the east till it reaches the area beyond the small Lebanese city of Bent Jubayel, where the separating line between the two countries curves to the north at a straight angle. At that point, the border comes around the fountain of the River Jordan, and a narrow passage adjacent to it from the east connects it with the land of Syria and the lakes Al-Hola, Lout and Tabarriyya. The border with Jordan begins to the south of Tabarriyya Lake at the drainage of Al-Yarmouk River. It continues along the River Jordan. From the fountain of the River Jordan, the border heads south across the geometrical middle of the Dead Sea and the Araba Valley till it reaches the of Aqaba. The borders with Egypt could be compared to a straight line that separates the semi-island of Seena and Al-Naqab desert. The border begins at Rafah at the Mediterranean Sea till it reaches Taba at the Gulf of Aqaba. On the west side, Palestine lies next to the international open waters of the Mediterranean Sea at a distance of about 250 km from Ras El-Nakoura in the north to Rafah in the south.Jerusalem Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities on earth and the monuments left behind by its original Jebusite inhabitants, who once belonged to a Canaanite tribe of the early Arabs having immigrated from the Arabian Peninsula, now bear witness to the Arab origins of this city 5,000 years ago.Alaqsa Mosque under the Israeli Occupation Al Haram Al Sharif represents the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict because of its religious significance for Moslems and of the Jewish claims of their alleged Haykal (Temple of Solomon) believed to exist underneath Al Haram Al Sharif. The holiness of Al Haram Al Sharif: The holiness of Al Haram Al Sharif is owing to its connection with Islamic Faith as the first Qibla (House of Worship) and its being the third mosque after Al Ka'ba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and the Prophet Mohammed's Mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Its significance has been reinforced by the incident of Al Isra'a and Al Mi'raj (the night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and the ascent to the Heavens by Prophet Mohammed) as shown in the Holy Qur'an, Text, Translation and Commentary by Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Surah (S.) Bani Isra'il (Children of Israel), verse 1: "Glory to (God) Who did take His Servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque (Al Ka'ba) to the Farthest Mosque (Al Masjidul Aqsa, Jerusalem) whose precincts We did bless-in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things) (1)." In addition, Prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings be upon him) says: "The saddles should not be prepared except for three mosques: Al Masjidul Haram (Al Ka'ba), the Prophet's Mosque, and Al Masjidul Aqsa." Moreover, the Prophet replied when he was asked about the history of the building of Al Aqsa by saying: "It was built immediately after Al Masjidul Haram (2)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) added: "The prayers at home are one-fold, at a local mosque is 25-fold, at a central mosque is 500-fold, and at Al Aqsa is 5,000-fold (3)."Alaqsa Mosque ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------Alaqsa Mosque under the Israeli Occupation By Feb 7, 2003, 01:18Email this Article Printer friendly pageAl Haram Al Sharif represents the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict because of its religious significance for Moslems and of the Jewish claims of their alleged Haykal (Temple of Solomon) believed to exist underneath Al Haram Al Sharif.The holiness of Al Haram Al Sharif Alaqsa Mosque The holiness of Al Haram Al Sharif is owing to its connection with Islamic Faith as the first Qibla (House of Worship) and its being the third mosque after Al Ka'ba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and the Prophet Mohammed's Mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Its significance has been reinforced by the incident of Al Isra'a and Al Mi'raj (the night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and the ascent to the Heavens by Prophet Mohammed) as shown in the Holy Qur'an, Text, Translation and Commentary by Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Surah (S.) Bani Isra'il (Children of Israel), verse 1: "Glory to (God) Who did take His Servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque (Al Ka'ba) to the Farthest Mosque (Al Masjidul Aqsa, Jerusalem) whose precincts We did bless-in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things) (1)." In addition, Prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings be upon him) says: "The saddles should not be prepared except for three mosques: Al Masjidul Haram (Al Ka'ba), the Prophet's Mosque, and Al Masjidul Aqsa." Moreover, the Prophet replied when he was asked about the history of the building of Al Aqsa by saying: "It was built immediately after Al Masjidul Haram (2)." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) added: "The prayers at home are one-fold, at a local mosque is 25-fold, at a central mosque is 500-fold, and at Al Aqsa is 5,000-fold (3)."History and Description Al Aqsa was given as a name for the whole sacred Sanctuary or Al Haram Al Sharif, including the Dome of the Rock (4). This part of the city is 140 dunums (5) or 15% of the old city area, which is about 1 square kilometre (6). It is located in the southeast part of the city (7), and is surrounded by a wall with 11gates. Seven of the gates are open while the others are closed (8). Al Haram Al Sharif itself has 14 doors, and 10 of them are open while the others are closed. The open doors are (9): - North Side: Al Asbat (Al Usoud), Hatteh, Sharaf Al Ahbia' or Faisal. - West Side: Al Ghawanmeh, Al Nather, Al Hadeed, Al Qattaneen, Al Mat-hereh, Al Selseleh and Al Magharbeh. The closed doors are: Al Sakeeneh, Al Rahmeh, Al Tawbeh and Al Buraq (10). Al Haram is connected with the other parts of the city through certain paths extending through the city (11). There are 25 drinking water wells in Al Haram, and 8 of them are in the Dome of the Rock, while the others are between Al Aqsa and the Rock where Al Aqsa's "water fountain" is located (12). In addition, there are several water facilities called Asbeleh, plural of Sbeel, which are free drinking water fountains (13), namely Qaitby, Sha'lan, Qasem Basha and Bab Al Habs. The mosque has four minarets (14), namely Bab Al Magharbeh, Al Selseleh, Al Ghawanmeh, Al Asbat. There are also several domes, namely Al Selseleh, Al Mi'raj, Mehrab Al Nabi, Yousef, Suleiman and Al Nahawy, as well as some floors such as Al Karak, Ala'a El Deen Al Basri and Al Ushaq, also known as "the Lovers". These floors are used by the "Sufis" or mystics for prayers and for teaching during the summer months (17). There are several porches on the north and west sides such as (18) the one extending from Bab Hatteh to Bab Faisal, the one parallel to Bab Faisal, the two lower porches under the Deputation building in the northwest sector, two newly built porches above that area, the western porches extending from Bab Al Ghawanmeh to Bab Al Nather, the porch extending from Bab Al Nather to Bab Al Qattaneen, the one extending from Bab Al Qattaneen to Bab Al Selseleh, and the one extending from Bab Al Selseleh to Bab Al Magharbeh. There are also two sundials: the first is located in the western sector, which was made by Mr. Mohammed Taher Abu Al Sa'ud, and the second is located in the southern sector on the bridge of Al Aqsa, which was made by the engineer Rushdy Al Imam (19).Al Aqsa Mosque Al Aqsa Mosque refers to the southern area of Al Haram Al Sharif, which is about 500 metres south of the Dome of the Rock (46). The interior is 80 metres long and 55 metres wide (47), with a dome in the centre of the ceiling. It also has 11 doors: 7 on the north side, 1 on the east side, 2 on the west side, and 1 on the south side (48). The Mosque was built by the Umayyad Caliph Abdel Malek Bin Marwan during the period 692-705 CE (49). This Mosque should not be confused with the mosque on the east side built by Omar Bin Al Khattab, the second Rightly-guided caliph, which was also a big mosque, able to accommodate about 3,000 people and covered with wood (50). Al Aqsa has 53 marble columns: 14 on the middle porch, 12 on the east porch, 8 under the dome, 11 on the eastern part of the dome, 7 in its western part, and 1 in Maqam Al Arba'een. It also has 49 stone pillars: 4 under the dome, 12 in the western porch, 4 in the eastern porch, 3 in the western part of the dome, and the others are in other places. These pillars are huge square supports, while the columns are smaller and cut from marble with a height of 5 metres and 43 centimetres in diameter in the upper part and 52 centimetres in the lower part. These columns are towered by stone arches with an opening of between 8.91 metres-9.17 metres with a height of 6.26 metres. The Mosque has 7 porches: 3 in the east, 3 in the west, and 1 in the middle (51). The dome is in the middle at a height of 17 metres, covered with mosaics that made it more splendid and charming. It has 2 layers: the interior has been explained previously while the external layer consists of wood plates covered with lead sheets. The space between them is 75 centimetres at the neck, 2.5 metres in the middle, and 3 metres at the upper part, towered by the Crescent. The neck is the cylindrical part between the dome itself and the arches upon which it lies. It is supported by 4 arches, each of them resting on 2 marble columns and a cylinder. Al Qibleh is under the dome in the extreme south and used to be called Mehrab Da'oud, but it was changed to Mehrab Omar, and there is another area called Mehrab Mu'awwiyya in a closet made of crossed steel. There is also Omar's mosque, built by the Caliph Omar Bin Al Khattab. It is 30 metres long, 8 metres wide, with a Mehrab and 4 small columns; 2 of them are spiral. To the north, there is a large space called Maqam Azeez or Maqam Al Arba'een. Maqam Zakariya is 6 metres long and 5 metres wide. Finally, there is a women's mosque consisting of 10 bridges built upon 9 well-built pillars (53). There is a large porch on the north side consisting of 7 bridges, each of them stands at one door. Moreover, there are 137 windows: 7 in the dome made of coloured glaze and slightly transparent, 42 in the middle porch, half of them overlooking the east porch while the others overlook the west porch. Half of these windows are transparent, 43 in the east side (24 of them made of coloured glass), 14 in the west side (2 are large and transparent while 12 are made of opaque glass), and finally 16 in the north side and 24 in the south side (22 of them are made of coloured glass) (54). There is an old building under the present one called the old mosque of Al Aqsa that is a large, long labyrinth consisting of chains of complexes lying upon huge pillars, both cylindrical and square, and another labyrinth called Suleiman's stable under the paved area of the mosque (55).The Dome of the Rock This building is located in the middle of Al Haram Al Sharif (20), and it was built by the Umayyad Caliph Abdel Malek Bin Marwan in 68-72 H (688-691 CE) (21). The dome of Al Selseleh had been built before as a model for the larger Rock (22). The Caliph made sure that the Islamic architecture was superior and more grand than the Christian churches in the city (23). The Mosque of the Dome of the Rock is situated on a hilly area covered with white marble (24), and it is called the yard or the dish of the Rock. It measures 219 yards northwest and 223.5 yards east-west with a height of 12 yards (25). There are flights of stone steps leading up to the Mosque. These steps are called Al Maraqi, towered by bridges called the Balances because it is believed that the balances of Doomsday will be held up there (26), and 9 of these Maraqi are around the Rock (27). The Dome of the Rock is an octagon; 4 of its sides face the 4 directions, and the Rock is in the centre and is about 1.5 metres high. It measures 18 metres long by 13 metres wide, covered by a circular dome consisting of four circular fringes covered with marble squares with three marble columns between every two of them. They also carry 16 arches covered with white and black marble. The upper circular part of the Dome is covered with mosaic decorations of plants in harmonious colours, mainly green, blue and gold. The neck has some shells with 16 windows, made internally of glaze and externally of china or "qashany" blocks decorated with circular vents (see figure 1). The neck is made of wood and lead and used to be covered with copper, however, now it is covered with gilded aluminum. The span between the two layers is 1 metre. The diameter is 20 metres and the height is 35 metres, towered by a 4.5 metre crescent. There is an octagon between the circular part of the building and the external octagon consisting of 8 supports covered with pied marble and 16 coloured marble columns--2 of them between every 2 supports that are towered by complexes covered with mosaics and a strip of Kufian calligraphy. There are also wooden and bronze inscriptions with gilded ornaments surrounded by frames of pied and colourful marble, especially white and gray. Externally, the building is covered with marble up to the midpoint of the octagon, while the upper part is covered with mosaics and images of plants. There are 7 curves at each side, 5 of them have open windows with coloured glaze and qashany blocks. Each side is 20 metres long and 12 metres high (28). Half of the lower part is covered with marble while the second half is covered with blue qashany squares inscribed with Surah Yaseen by the Ottoman sultan, Suleiman Al Qanouni in 1615 CE (29). The ceiling of the middle and external porches is flat and covered with wooden decorations leaning toward the external octagon and covered with lead sheets, but they are covered with silver aluminum sheets. The neck is covered with qashany decorations outside with a strip containing Surah Al Isra'a (the night journey), which was made in the 15th century. The neck had been covered with mosaics decorated with plant images (30). There are 40 columns, and 4 large external doors (31), namely David's door or (Isra'fil), the Paradise door, Al Aqsa door and the west door facing Bab Al Qattaneen (32).