Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita prayed at Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied Jerusalem on Tuesday, saying that he wanted to send a message that if the “circumstances are difficult, it does not mean to surrender.” The Moroccan minister chose to start his visit in support of the Palestinians from Al-Aqsa before heading to Ramallah, where he met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki. Bourita’s visit to Al-Aqsa is the first by a senior Moroccan official. Moroccan King Abdullah VI agreed on this visit with Abbas in December, in the wake of the US decision to consider Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move to US embassy to it. The Moroccan minister, who toured the Mosque’s squares and listened to historical, religious and political explanations about the holy site, said his presence “is a message of support for the steadfastness of the Palestinian people and their leadership, and for Jerusalemites in particular.” “The Arab Islamic identity of this city is part of us all, Arabs and Muslims,” he added. He said that his country, which heads the Al Quds Committee of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), has provided about $60 million to Jerusalem through Beit Mal Al Quds, to cover projects that included construction of schools, renovation of educational institutions and hospitals and the establishment of an activity center. Later on Tuesday, Bourita met with Abbas, who hosted an official dinner in his honor. Maliki said following his meeting with his Moroccan counterpart: “The Moroccan foreign minister’s presence here is a clear indication of the importance attached to Palestine and Jerusalem by the people of the Arab Maghreb.” He also praised Morocco’s longstanding support for the Palestinian Cause in general and Jerusalem in particular, noting that Morocco’s King Mohammed VI was the chairman of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s Jerusalem Committee. He added that Bourita “saw today how the Palestinian people live under occupation, groaning under Israeli barriers and illegal security measures”. The Moroccan minister, for his part, reaffirmed that his visit was aimed at underlining his country’s “well-founded position in support of the Palestinian people and leadership.”