Published: 2021-04-27 20:33
Last Updated: 2024-03-23 22:37
The Director General of Awqaf for Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque Affairs, His Eminence Sheikh Muhammad Azzam Al-Khatib, Tuesday thanked His Majesty King Abdullah II, the Hashemite Custodian of the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, for his donation to renew furnishings of the Noble Rock in Al-Aqsa Mosque, at his own expense.
Al-Qibli Mosque is the dome-shaped building located south of Al-Aqsa Mosque. It is called Al-Qibli because it is located in the direction of Al-Qibla. The Qibla is the direction towards the Ka'aba in the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which is used by Muslims in various religious contexts, particularly the direction of prayer.
The Noble Rock, commonly called the Foundation Stone, is the rock at the center of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.
Khatib said in a press statement, that the royal donation came during His Majesty's meeting, attended by Islamic Awqaf representatives and church leaders from Jerusalem.
He also expressed his gratitude towards His Majesty for exempting tenants of awqaf properties from last year's rent, and for disbursing the end-of-service gratuities after retirement for employees of the Awqaf Department, as well as the Hashemite rewards that were implemented in The Church of the Holy Sepulcher and other Jerusalem institutions.
In 2011 and 2015, His Majesty, at his own expense, carpeted all prayer rooms and mosques of Al-Aqsa Mosque.