Kuwait –July 22, 2023
Kuwait’s official news agency “Kuna” has shed light on Saturday (July 22, 2023) on the contributions and programs carried out by Bayt Mal Al-Quds Agency, the executive arm of Al Quds Committee chaired by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, to protect and preserve the civilizational legacy of the city of Al Quds, as a human shared heritage, and improve the social and economic living conditions of Al Quds inhabitants.
Kuna interviewed the Agency acting director, Dr. Mohamed Salem Echarkaoui, who stressed that the Agency grants utmost importance to fulfilling its duty in protecting and preserving the civilizational heritage of the city of Al Quds as a shared human legacy, preserving the cultural identity of the city and reinforcing its religious and legal status.
Dr. Echarkaoui also noted that since its creation in 1998 at the initiative of His Majesty the late King Hassan II of Morocco, chairman of Al Quds Committee, an offshoot of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Agency has been mandated to improve the social and economic conditions of Al Quds inhabitants and support their institutions through funds so that they can continue to fulfill their mission to consolidate the national identity of Al Quds Asharif.
“The present economic and social conditions in Al Quds Asharif are worrying,” he stressed calling for joining Arab, Islamic and international wills to support the sectors suffering from the settlement policies, by extending to the local institutions concrete and sustainable support and the necessary means and resources so that they can continue to fulfill their mission.
Dr. Echarkaoui further underscored that the Agency has achieved important gains all along the last 25 years, citing in this context a major project and over a thousand small and medium-sized projects geared to providing grounds to support the resistance of Al Quds inhabitants. He also explained that thanks to its acute knowledge of the situation in the city, the Agency has “gained extensive expertise regarding the city’s specificities and is, therefore, endeavoring according to the priorities imposed by the swift changes happening in the region, particularly the security challenges that impact its actions continuation and fluidity”.
He noted that Al Quds population need an average of 15,000 to 20,000 new houses in the old city, 28 new schools and 20 kindergartens, in addition to equipping health care center and hospitals, consolidating their operation budgets, providing cultural centers and stadiums for young people and women and rehabilitating buildings, mosques and monuments to preserve city’s cultural and civilizational heritage.
Echarkaoui also underscored that the Agency is living up to its responsibility, as much as possible, to adopt and carry out projects in Al Quds Asharif, under the authority of the trusteeship council and administrative board, insisting that it does not require any pre-requisites to extend help and assistance to the inhabitants and institutions of Al Quds, but makes sure that assistance reaches the recipients who deserve it without intermediaries and in total respect of the laws in force.
The Agency acting Director noted that Bayt Mal Al Quds Asharif Agency that incarnates the Islamic nation’s will to support the holy city needs funds to be able to continue to live up to its commitments in protecting the city, preserving its civilizational heritage and upholding its resistant populations.
He also underlined the Agency’s opening onto partners, donor and benefactors for the sake of cooperation and partnership to finance social and development projects in Al Quds, praising the past contributions of the State of Kuwait to social projects in Al Quds. He noted in this regard that Kuwait contributed, in 2008, USD 1 million to fund some projects supervised by the Agency.
Regarding attempts to obliterate the city’s identity and change its legal status, Echarkaoui stressed that all these attempts “are doomed to failure”, warning that “disturbing the natural, economic, demographic and environmental balance of the holy city will further complicate the situation” and will be refused by the inhabitants who might, as a result, have risky reactions “knowing that Palestinians, just like any other life-loving people, defend their right to live in total freedom and dignity on their land”.
