Speaking in an exclusive interview with Tasnim, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, the imam of the al-Aqsa Mosque, called the Balfour Declaration a “deception” by Britain against the Palestinian people.
“In addition to Palestinians, the Arab world and Islamic World are also encountering difficulties as a result of the declaration,” Sabri said.
He pointed to atrocities committed against Palestinians since the occupation of Palestine by the Zionists and said, “Britain has committed a wrong against the Palestinian nation (by the Balfour Declaration) but it does not intend to admit it.”
The cleric stressed that Britain must apologize for the Balfour Declaration.
The British prime minister said a week ago that she will celebrate the centenary of the Balfour Declaration, which paved the way for the creation of Israel, with “pride”.
Many British people and politicians showed negative reaction to the UK government support for the Balfour Declaration.
Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the British opposition Labor party and a staunch advocate for Palestinian rights, has declined an invitation to attend a dinner commemorating the Balfour Declaration.
In the meantime, a group of British activists have spent six months walking from the UK to Palestine to apologize for the Balfour Declaration, which paved the way for occupying the Palestinian lands by Zionist occupiers.
On November 2, 1917, Balfour, Britain’s then foreign secretary, sent a 67-word communique to the Zionist leader Rothschild. The short note, which would be known as the Balfour Declaration, stated the UK’s support for “a national home for the Jewish people” and paved the way for the creation of the Israeli regime.