Video - The PA adopts Hamas' religious belief presenting peace with Israel as a violation of Islam.

The PA adopts Hamas' religious belief presenting peace with Israel as a violation of Islam. (Palwatch).

by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik

Abbas' advisor on Religious and Islamic Affairs, Mahmoud Al-Habbash:

"The entire land of Palestine is [Islamic] waqf and is blessed land... it is prohibited to sell, bestow ownership or facilitate the occupation of even a millimeter of it." [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Oct. 22, 2014]
 

"What are we [Fatah and Hamas] divided about? Do we disagree about Jerusalem, for example? [Do we] disagree about liberating Palestine from the [Jordan] River to the [Mediterranean] Sea?"

[Official PA TV, Sept. 26, 2014]

"All this [Western Wall and Al-Aqsa Mosque plaza] is waqf and kharaj land (i.e., land belonging to Muslims) and no one is permitted to sell it or negotiate over it or forfeit it. It is ours and will remain ours. The occupation [Israel] is the one that will leave." [Official PA TV, Nov. 7, 2014]

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At least three times in recent weeks, Mahmoud Abbas' advisor on Religious and Islamic Affairs and the Palestinian Authority's Supreme Shari'ah Judge, Mahmoud Al-Habbash, has made statements showing that the PA agrees with Hamas' religious belief claiming Islamic sanctity over all of the State of Israel. In one of his statements, Al-Habbash used the same language as Hamas does in its charter:

Mahmoud Al-Habbash: "The entire land of Palestine is waqf (i.e., an inalienable religious endowment in Islamic law) and is blessed land."

 [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Oct. 22, 2014]
 

When PA leaders use the term "entire land of Palestine," they refer to both the PA areas and all of the area of the State of Israel, as documented by Palestinian Media Watch.

This designation of all of Israel as "waqf" has far-reaching political ramifications as it prohibits and precludes any authentic PA peace treaty with Israel. These political implications are evident in Abbas' advisor's statement:

"It is prohibited to sell, bestow ownership or facilitate the occupation of even a millimeter of it [Palestine]." [Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Oct. 22, 2014]

"All this [Western Wall and Al-Aqsa Mosque plaza] is waqf and kharaj land (i.e., land belonging to Muslims) and no one is permitted to sell it or negotiate over it or forfeit it. It is ours and will remain ours." [Official PA TV, Nov. 7, 2014]