Jordan commended for efforts to safeguard holy sites in Jerusalem

AMMAN — Attendees of the Jerusalem Endowment Fund’s meeting held in Amman on Friday called for unifying efforts and donor funds to support the steadfastness of Jerusalemites, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

They praised Jordan’s efforts under the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah to stop all Israeli schemes and defend Jerusalem in all international platforms, supporting and helping Palestinians in the occupied city and protecting Islamic and Christian holy sites. 

Speaking at the meeting, attended by senior officials and journalists, Saudi Prince Turki Al Faisal commended Jordan’s role in defending the Palestinian cause and said Islamic and Christian efforts should be unified to defend holy sites in Palestine, noting that it is a shared responsibility. 

For his part, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Jassim Al Thani stressed the importance of supporting Jerusalemites’ resilience in the face of the injustice of Israeli forces. 

The chairman of the fund’s board, Munib R. Masri, said Jerusalem should be supported in order to rise and “forever” remain Palestine’s capital, noting that it is facing the expanding Israeli occupation, land theft, isolation from other Palestinian lands, change to its demographic status quo and Judaisation attempts.

Awqaf Minister Hayel Dawood commended the efforts of the fund, which is going to implement practical programmes to offer investment projects to Jerusalemites, whom he described as the poorest of all Palestinians. 

A member of the fund’s board, Ahmad Ruwaidi, said it aims at encouraging Palestinians and Arabs to invest in the holy city, the income of which will be used to ensure self-sufficiency in light of hard economic conditions, Petra reported.

The JD100 million fund was created by the University of Jordan, Al Quds University and the Munib R. Masri Development Foundation earlier this year to advance scientific research and rebuild Jerusalem.