■ The Last Ottoman Soldier Who Guarded al-Aqsa Mosque.
The last Ottoman soldier to guard al-Aqsa Mosque was Sergeant Hasan al-Ighdirli,
who remained in Jerusalem until 1982
and passed away at the age of 93.
He refused to follow orders to withdraw from Jerusalem and return to Turkey, because for him, Jerusalem was above all orders.
When asked decades later why he had not returned, he said he feared that the Prophet Muhammad would be saddened by leaving the first Qibla and the third holiest mosque unguarded.
A Turkish journalist, İlhan Bardakçı, met Hasan by chance in al-Aqsa in 1972. He observed him standing motionless near the second courtyard of the mosque.
People told the journalist Hasan was “mad,”
as he had been there for years, standing like
a statue, looking only at the mosque.
When the journalist approached and greeted him in Turkish, Hasan responded in clear Anatolian Turkish: “Peace be upon you, son”, astonishing the journalist.
Hasan explained that after the Ottoman Empire fell, to prevent looting in Jerusalem, a unit of the Ottoman army remained in the city until
the British army arrived.
He insisted on staying with this unit rather
than returning to Turkey. He belonged to the 20th Corps, 36th Brigade, 8th Regiment, 11th Machine Gun Unit.
Hasan and his fellow Turkish guards stayed to protect al-Aqsa, so that Palestinians would not feel abandoned by the Ottomans, and to honor the sanctity of the mosque.
Over decades, all his comrades passed away (53 men), but Hasan continued his post.
He asked the journalist to convey greetings to his former officer, Captain Mustafa, who had entrusted him with the mosque’s protection.
Sergeant Hasan remained a steadfast guardian of al-Aqsa, leaving his homeland and family, showing courage, loyalty, and honor.
He finally passed away in 1982, becoming
the last Ottoman soldier guarding the mosque.
