The fire that swept through the Al-Aqsa Mosque 54 years ago was not the most dangerous threat against it, as courageous Palestinians managed to extinguish it. But the real danger arises from the Israeli occupation forces and colonial settlers’ ongoing violations against it.

The colonisers' daily incursions into the holy site and the diggings underneath its foundations, as well as the occupation government's endeavours to divide it temporally and spatially, are good cases in point.

Today marks the 54th anniversary of the tragic incident when the Al-Aqsa Mosque was set ablaze. This act of arson by an Australian Jewish extremist named Michael Dennis Rohan took place on August 21, 1969, causing severe damage to the mosque's structure, including its facades, ceilings, carpets, decorations, furniture, and copies of the holy Quran.
 
The fire affected several significant areas within the mosque's complex, including the Omar Mosque, Zakaria's Mihrab, the Mosque of the Forty Martyrs, three corridors, and a total of seventy-four wooden windows.

Despite the passage of over five decades, the scars of this event continue to cast a shadow. The flames of that day are emblematic of ongoing Israeli violations against the Al-Aqsa Mosque. 

These violations persist largely unchecked as the occupation authorities continue to violate the Al-Aqsa Mosque, including through frequent incursions by colonial settlers, expulsion orders targeting Muslim worshipers, and attempts to Judaise the area and expand colonial settlements.

Immediately after the arson, the Israeli occupation forces compounded the damage by cutting off the water supply and obstructing firefighters from reaching the scene to extinguish the flames. 

This premeditated attack triggered widespread protests and outrage across the Muslim world. Additionally, thousands of Muslims performed Friday prayers in the mosque's courtyards and organised marches in the vicinity to express their condemnation of the racially-motivated attack.

These violations are clear attempts to further undermine the Islamic character of the mosque and drive Palestinians out of the occupied Palestinian capital of Jerusalem.

The international community must take action to protect the Al-Aqsa Mosque and ensure that it remains a place of worship for Muslims around the world. This includes condemning the Israeli occupation's violations against the Al-Aqsa Mosque, imposing sanctions on the settler-colonial occupation state, and supporting the Palestinian people's right to self-determination.