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Days after Israel's forces captured East Jerusalem in early June 1967, Moshe Dayan, the defence minister who led the attack, met prominent Palestinian figures at Al Aqsa Mosque compound. He told them that site management would remain with Jordan, the kingdom whose troops he had just been fighting in the Arab-Israeli War.
The soldier-politician possessed political acumen, unlike the extremists in Israel's current government, says Sheikh Azzam Al Tamimi, head of the Jordanian-run Jerusalem Religious Affairs Department.
Religious ultra-nationalists, emboldened by the Israel-Gaza war, have been encouraging more incursions into Al Aqsa. They have also been restricting the entry of Muslims – especially younger people – while encouraging Jews to pray there, which many Muslims view as provocative.
Sheikh Azzam has worked at Al Aqsa as an employee of the Jordanian government division, known as the Awqaf, since 1973 and became its head in 2007.
They are trying to change the religious and legal and historical status in Jerusalem. It is very dangerous
Sheikh Azzam Al Tamimi,
Jerusalem Religious Affairs Department
From his office, in an Ottoman-era building at the entrance of the complex, he says Mr Dayan realised that Israel could not afford to antagonise Muslims worldwide by trespassing on Al Aqsa's grounds.
A computer screen on his desk displays feeds from cameras monitoring parts of the 150,000 square metre compound. They show Israeli soldiers posted inside, contrary to what Mr Dayan wanted. He had ordered the withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from the site, stationing them only at its main doors, and that the Israeli flag be taken down from the nearby Dome of the Rock.
“He knew that Al Aqsa was so important to the Muslim world, and that it was not theirs [Israel's] to occupy,” Sheikh Azzam says.
Israel is “the one with the weapons”, and as the occupying power it is obliged to protect the mosque, but it does not have the right to station troops there, he says.
Even before 1967, the Awqaf allowed Christians and Jews into Al Aqsa compound on the condition that they respect that it is a wholly Muslim place of worship by not praying there. The arrangement is part of what Jordan says is the status quo ante – the situation that existed before the war in which occupying forces are not allowed to change.
Sheikh Azzam says the postwar actions by Mr Dayan, and the 1994 peace treaty between Jordan and Israel, mean that the Awqaf should retain control over entry to the site and that Jews should be banned from praying or performing rituals there.
However, they are being increasingly encouraged to do so by the ultra-nationalists who form a core component of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government.
Last month, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said he “would put an Israeli flag” in the complex and build a synagogue there if he could. The Ministry of Heritage also announced plans to finance tours for Jews and tourists to the compound.
Mr Ben-Gvir and other extremists “will lead Israel to ruin”, Sheikh Azzam says. “They will make everyone hate the Jewish people. They want to bring Al Aqsa down. But it will be always a Muslim place of worship,” he says. “No one would remain silent if their holy places are violated.”
Built sometime between the late 8th and early 9th century under the Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate, Al Aqsa became a symbol of Islam’s golden era, and a connection between the religion, which was born in inner Arabia, and Jerusalem, the crown jewel of many conquests.
Jordan's claim to the right to administer Al Aqsa is based on the custodianship awarded in the 1920s by Palestinian religious leaders to Sharif Hussein bin Ali, a great grandfather of Jordan's King Abdullah II, who led efforts to raise money in the Middle East and beyond to renovate the mosque. He died in 1931 and is buried in the grounds of Al Aqsa.
But since the Gaza war began last October, Israel has increased restrictions on the entry of worshippers into Al Aqsa, especially of young males. Worshippers from the occupied West Bank have been unable to pray there because Israel barred entry to Palestinians from the occupied territory after the war began.
The restrictions are more severe at dawn prayers on Friday, which are highly popular with the faithful, says Sheikh Azzam.
“Israel cannot intercept any Muslim who wants to pray at Al Aqsa,” he says, pointing out that only the Awqaf should authorise who is let in and who to keep out.
Israel must also stop incursions by Jewish worshippers to restore the pre-1967 war status quo, he says, and remove troops who have turned Al Aqsa “into a camp, inside and out”.
“They are trying to change the religious and legal and historical status in Jerusalem. It is very dangerous,” says Sheikh Azzam.
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The biog
Most memorable achievement: Leading my first city-wide charity campaign in Toronto holds a special place in my heart. It was for Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women program and showed me the power of how communities can come together in the smallest ways to have such wide impact.
Favourite film: Childhood favourite would be Disney’s Jungle Book and classic favourite Gone With The Wind.
Favourite book: To Kill A Mockingbird for a timeless story on justice and courage and Harry Potters for my love of all things magical.
Favourite quote: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” — Winston Churchill
Favourite food: Dim sum
Favourite place to travel to: Anywhere with natural beauty, wildlife and awe-inspiring sunsets.
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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UAE tour of Zimbabwe
All matches in Bulawayo
Friday, Sept 26 – UAE won by 36 runs
Sunday, Sept 28 – Second ODI
Tuesday, Sept 30 – Third ODI
Thursday, Oct 2 – Fourth ODI
Sunday, Oct 5 – First T20I
Monday, Oct 6 – Second T20I
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
