www.dailystar.com As custodian of Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, Jordan has begun the first major restoration in four centuries of the ancient walls of Al-Aqsa, the third holiest site in Islam.

The head of the project, Raef Najm, dismisses Israeli warnings that parts of the walls could collapse and says the work that started last week is part of a long-term program, with funds from Unesco.

"What we are undertaking now is the first real restoration of the walls of the mosque since the work done under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent in the 16th century," says Najm. "This is a historic mission aimed at preserving a humanitarian civilization ... which belongs not only to Muslims but to the entire world."

Najm is the deputy president of a Jordanian state committee that has been involved in restoration and repair work since 1952 at Al-Aqsa, Islam's holiest site after Mecca and Medina.

Earlier this year his team wrapped up a year-long mission to repair the southern wall of Al-Aqsa after detecting bulges and holes caused by rainwater infiltration, and in February they carried out similar work on the east wall.

The southern and eastern walls of Al-Aqsa form part of the ancient walls of the Old City of Jerusalem that run for a total of 4,200 meters at various heights, Najm says.

Experts and technicians from the Jordanian Restoration Committee began the latest restoration work using a sophisticated "tension rod system" to drill holes into columns of the wall, Najm explains.

Rust-proof metal rods, 24 millimeters in size each, are introduced into the columns and three rows of columns have so far been consolidated, he says.

The work also consists of injecting a special lime-binding material into the cracks and holes which have appeared across the outer layer of the wall, Najm adds.

"It is a new method that is used in the maintenance of ancient buildings and monuments which allow the construction to resist against earthquakes," Najm says.

He estimates the current operation will cost some $140,000 while the full restoration and consolidation work of the other walls and structures at Al-Aqsa could reach $140 million.

The funds are expected to come from Unesco, the UN's educational, social and cultural organization, as part of a plan it is drafting to restore all the ancient sites of the Old City, Najm says.

"All the ancient walls of Jerusalem are at risk, not only those of Al-Aqsa," if the city is hit by a massive earthquake, Najm says.

But he plays down the risk, even though Jerusalem lies near a major fault that runs through the region and dismisses Israeli warnings that parts of Al-Aqsa could collapse.

"The percentage of truth in the Israeli allegations is zero," he says. "The buildings within the Al-Aqsa compound are the best in Jerusalem and cannot be damaged unless an earthquake wipes out all of Jerusalem's Old City."

Israeli Interior Minister Gideon Ezra caused a storm in September by saying the roof of the Marwani prayer room, which Jews know as Solomon's Stables, under Al-Aqsa could collapse because of the number of worshippers flocking to the mosque compound during the current holy month of Ramadan.

"It is necessary to build pillars to support the southern wall of this structure and if this doesn't happen, the police will limit access to the mosque compound during Ramadan," he said.

The compound is known to Muslims as Al-Haram Al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary). It is also revered by Jews, as it was once the site of the Jewish temple, the holiest shrine in Judaism, destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

A spokeswoman for Israel's antiquities authorities, Onat Guez, says the Jordanian work at Al-Aqsa is being carried out in coordination with Israeli police.

But she insists that the eastern wall of the Temple Mount, some 100 meters from the mosque, was in danger of collapsing and needed urgent preservation work.