The Masjid al-Aqsa of Jerusalem is linked in the Quran to the story of the night journey of Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem. Al Masjid Al-Aqsa was founded forty (days or months or years) next to the Ka`bah. Historians believe that Prophet Ibrahim, peace and blessings be upon him, was the one who built or ordered Al-Aqsa to be built. It was demolished during the conquests of Jerusalem. `Umar Ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, is the first one then who restored Al-Aqsa. He recognized the sight but nothing was built. When abdul-Malik Ibn Marwan held the office in the year 66 A.H., he rebuilt Al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock.
Al-Aqsa is one of the largest and most important mosques in the Muslim world, and the earliest in Palestine
Al Masjid Al Aqsa has a very special place in the hearts of the entire Muslim community due to its unique and rich history as a place of worship that is so closely intertwined with the lives of many of the Prophets of Islam, as well as for its special status as a Masjid to which travel is recommended and in which reward is increased. It is a special and blessed Masjid of vast size comprising 144,000 square metres in size (covering approximately 1/6th of the entire area of the Old City of Jerusalem) and with capacity to accommodate in the region of 500,000 worshippers.
The site has been the most contested piece of territory in the Holy Land since Israel occupied East Jerusalem, including the Old City, in 1967, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However, the conflict dates even further back, to before the creation of Israel.
