Palestinians mark Prophet’s birthday at Al-Aqsa Mosque

By Abdul Raouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) - Palestinians on Thursday marked the anniversary of the birth of Prophet Muhammad at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Speaking on the occasion, Palestinian officials and religious figures stressed their commitment to protecting the iconic mosque -- Islam’s third holiest site after Mecca and Medina -- and condemned Israeli violations against it.

"Our meeting here, at the holy Al-Aqsa, sends a message to the enemy -- and the whole world -- that we remain the mosque’s faithful servants,” Sheikh Mohammed Hussein, Mufti of Palestine, said.

“We are the guardians of this mosque,” he added. “We are the custodians of Jerusalem and its holy places."

Sheikh Omar al-Kiswani, the mosque’s imam, for his part, declared: "Praise be to Allah, who has blessed us with the opportunity to serve and protect the Al-Aqsa Mosque and celebrate the birth of our beloved prophet, peace be upon him."