AMMAN: Sheikh Abdullah Ghoshah, Jordan’s Sharia (religious courts) Chief Justice, yesterday [July 29] cabled an appeal to the Shah of Iran, President Mohammad Ayub Khan and Turkish Premier Suleyman Demirel “to remove the hand of tyranny from the city of .Jerusalem and save Al-Aqsa Mosque”.

The three leaders are holding talks in the Iranian Caspian coast resort of Ramsar, one of the main topics being the future of the Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO).

The cable accused the Israelis of “desecrating Al-Aqsa Mosque, digging on its land and being indifferent to the feelings of millions of Muslims and world opinion”.

“We appeal to your Muslim zeal and religious brotherhood and ask you at your meeting today to take an effective decision for removing the hand of tyranny from the City of Jerusalem and saving Al-Aqsa Mosque from the stain of Zionism and the claws of the enemies,” the cable added.

[Meanwhile, as reported by agencies in Moscow,] a strong earthquake hit Turkey early today [July 30] between 6 and 9 miles East of Istanbul, the Soviet news agency “Tass” reported.

The earthquake was registered by the Soviet Union’s central seismic station Moskva here. About 200 people have been killed during the last eight days by the two major earthquakes in Turkey. More than 110 of them died in the eastern part of the country last Wednesday, when a tremor hit the mountainous area round the town of Fern.

According to the data registered by the Moskva station, the centre of today’s tremor was near the city of Adapazari — centre of violent tremors last week-end which left 83 dead.

Turkey lives in constant fear of earthquakes which have killed more than 40,000 of its people in this century.

The earthquake that shook the Adapazari area in Sakarina province early today killed at least one person and injured about 40 others, the Turkish Press agency “Anatolia” reported.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2017