Israeli-based TV Channel airs “Shiites in Israel” documentary
Tel Aviv -based international 24-hour news television channel i24NEWS aired a documentary on the history and background of Shiites in Israel.
In this 30-minute documentary in Arabic, the reporter of the Israeli channel examined the various aspects of the life of Shiites in Israel.
Most of the Shia in Israel are the Ismaili Shiites left over from the period of Fatimid Empire’s conquest in Egypt and North Africa, who lived in the north of Israel in the bordering areas with Lebanon.
After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire following the First World War, and the British protectorate over Palestine, and even until the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, the Shiites lived a peaceful life, mainly in 7 Shia villages near the border of Lebanon.
They freely performed Shiite traditions and rituals, especially mourning ceremonies for Aba Abdillah al-Hussein, peace be upon him. However, after border lines with Lebanon were drawn, some Shiites migrated to Lebanon and some of them remained in their villages.
In 1950, the city of Ashkelon, located south of Tel Aviv and west of Jerusalem, was occupied by Israeli forces, and following the occupation, Moshe Dayan, the then-prime minister of Israel, officially destroyed Islamic buildings, especially the famous and historical mosque of Ras al-Hussein, peace be upon him.
In the following years, the municipality of Ashkelon built a marble area with fences on the site of the destroyed mosque, which is visited by Shiites from all over the world for worship, Ziyarah and supplication.
There are no exact statistics on the number of Shiites in Israel because many of them practice taqiyyah and hide their Shiite beliefs due to security pressures.
However, there are many images published and shared on the Social Media that show the congregational prayer in the grounds of the Al-Aqsa Mosque depicting worshippers praying without folding arms and prostrating on Turbat of Aba Abdillah al-Hussein, peace be upon him.
