In a fresh step to tighten restrictions on freedoms in Jerusalem, the Israeli occupation authorities on Thursday handed Jerusalem-based journalist Mohammed Sadiq an order barring him from the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque for one week. This came only hours after his arrest at the Shuʿfat Camp checkpoint and his subsequent release on condition of complying with the ban.
Such measures are no longer isolated incidents but have turned into a systematic policy targeting Jerusalemite journalists and activists, in an attempt to muzzle voices that report on violations committed by the occupation against Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Holy City. Banishment is used as an arbitrary punishment without genuine judicial grounds and without any guarantees of the right to defence or to a fair trial.
Forced removal orders from Al-Aqsa Mosque constitute a double violation of international law. They infringe, firstly, upon the freedoms of worship and movement guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and, secondly, they breach the obligations of an occupying power under the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits collective penalties or restrictions on civilians’ access to their holy sites.
Furthermore, the targeting of journalists in particular amounts to a direct assault on freedom of opinion and expression and on the public’s right to information, which are fundamental rights that may not be arbitrarily curtailed even in times of emergency or armed conflict. International law affords special protection to media professionals as direct witnesses to events; any attempt to silence them through arrest or banishment constitutes a form of systematic repression.
The repeated use of removal orders against Jerusalemites also reveals a strategic approach aimed at stripping Al-Aqsa of its indigenous Palestinian presence, which may rise to the level of a crime of collective persecution against the residents of Jerusalem. This policy seeks to undermine their religious and national identity and sever their connection to their holy places.
Taken together with other restrictions imposed on Jerusalemites, including blockade, revocation of residency rights, and house demolitions. These practices form a clear picture of an oppressive and systematic policy that goes beyond sporadic breaches to amount to ongoing international crimes requiring accountability.
