A prominent imam at Masjid Al-Aqsa in occupied Jerusalem and former Palestinian minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, Sheikh Yousef Salama, has been martyred in an Israeli missile attack on his home in Gaza Sunday, media reported on Monday.
According to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA Sheikh Yousef Salama was at his home in the al-Maghazi Refugee Camp in the Central Gaza Strip when hit by the Israeli missiles Sunday morning.
Israeli warplanes targeted the home of Sheikh Salama, leading to his martyrdom and the injury of several members of his family.
Sheikh Salama was born in 1964 in Al-Maghazi refugee camp. His family originated from the Palestinian town of Beit Tima, from where they were expelled during the Nakba in 1948. He obtained a doctorate in social solidarity in the Islamic endowment and its effects in Palestine, in addition to a master’s degree in the Islamic endowment in Palestine.
Besides serving as Imam and Khateeb at Masjid Al-Aqsa in occupied Jerusalem, Sheikh Salama held several prestigious positions, including Minister of Endowments and Religious Affairs and Secretary of the Academic Council at Al-Azhar Institute in Gaza. He also served as a lecturer at the Al-Azhar University of Gaza.
Israeli Occupation Forces have been bombing Gaza since Oct 7 following Hamas’ Operation Al-Aqsa Storm launched in response to the Zionist aggression against the Palestinians and provocation by the illegal settlers.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 21,822 Palestinians have been martyred, and 56,451 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza as of December 31, 2023.
Among those killed are as many as 106 media professionals, besides aid workers and staff working for the UN, WHO, Red Cross and other aid agencies.
Palestinian and international estimates say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
