An Israeli crane stopped in Al-Buraq Square and raised the tower above Al-Tanaksiya School (Al-Jazeera)
Occupied Jerusalem
- Today, Sunday, the Israeli occupation authorities installed a communications tower equipped with cameras above the western portico of Al-Aqsa Mosque, through which the courtyards of the mosque and worshipers can be monitored.
A Palestinian source told Al Jazeera Net that the occupation authorities in Jerusalem carried out work a few days ago on the tank school above Bab al-Silsilah, in the western corridor of the mosque, and placed barriers around the workplace.
The same source added that on Sunday afternoon, the occupation installed a high-rise communications tower equipped with sensors through which the movement of those arriving to the mosque could be tracked, and high-resolution cameras that would reveal all the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The communications tower was placed in an area from which the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque can be monitored (Al-Jazeera)
The tower was installed via a crane that stopped in Al-Buraq Square, and pictures obtained by Al-Jazeera Net show people excavating in the place where the tower was placed on top of the historic building of the school.
A source told Al Jazeera Net that the occupation police in Jerusalem reinforced the surveillance cameras in the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the alleys of the Old City of Jerusalem, and replaced the old cameras with modern ones.
The Israeli measures come at a time when the occupation is moving to restrict the access of Palestinians from 1948 and Jerusalem to Al-Aqsa Mosque during the month of Ramadan.
Excavation work above the Al-Tanaksiya School, which the occupation has used since 1969 as a center for its forces (Al-Jazeera)
On February 18, the private Channel 13 said that despite the Israeli Shin Bet warning of unrest between the Palestinians inside and the Israeli police, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the recommendation of the far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, “to limit the access of Palestinian worshipers to... Al-Aqsa Mosque during the coming month of Ramadan.
The school is attributed to its creator, Prince Saif al-Din Tankaz al-Nasiri, one of the leaders of the Mamluk state, who established it around the year 729 AH/1328 AD. It consists of two floors and went through several uses, including an orphanage, a hadith center, a mosque, and a Sharia court during the days of the Ottoman Empire.
In June 1969, the Israeli occupation seized it and turned it into the headquarters of the Border Guard Division in its army.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies