Khassaki Sultan, Ottoman hospice serves Jerusalemites

JERUSALEM

Samir Jaber stirs huge pots in a historic building in the Old City in East Jerusalem, while dozens of Palestinians wait to receive their hot meals.

For 22 years, Jaber has prepared food daily in the hospice for poor families in occupied East Jerusalem and its environs.

"I am proud to provide meals to these families," Jaber told Anadolu. "We also have Christian families that we provide with meals in Ramadan and other months of the year."

Tekke Khassaki Sultan

The Hospice Khassaki Sultan was established in 1552 and named after the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent's wife, also known as Sultana Roxelana (1502-1558 AD), along with many other endowments in Palestine.

Khassaki Sultan, which translates to "Sultan's Own Joy," is the most important hospice among many established by the Ottoman Empire to provide food to the poor.

The building includes a kitchen, large dining hall, rooms for storing supplies, old stables for horses and a mosque that was attached later following the orders of the Sultan's wife.

Historian Aref Al-Aref described the hospice in his book, "Al-Mufassal in the History of Jerusalem," as "one of the best charitable places established by the Ottoman Turks in Jerusalem."

"The expenses of the hospice were paid from the proceeds of the property," he said.

For decades, the hospice has been supervised by the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem, affiliated with the Jordanian Ministry of Endowments.

It is considered the most important economic source for the needy in Jerusalem.

Islamic endowments

The Al-Aqsa Mosque, along with several institutions including Khassaki Sultan, has been operating under the auspices of the endowments department for more than 500 years,” Bassam Abu Libdeh, an official with the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem and supervisor of the Khassaki Sultan hospice, told Anadolu.

"Khassaki Sultan provides hot meals daily during Ramadan and other days of the year to poor families and visitors to Al-Aqsa Mosque," he said.

He added that the hospice provides meals to about 100 families daily, and the numbers increase during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan during which Muslims fast from pre-dawn to sundown.

Abu Libdeh considers the hospice to be "a part of the heritage of the Palestinian people and the presence of Jerusalemites."

"It is no less important than the rest of the ancient buildings in the Old City," he noted, pointing out that the duties of the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem included supervising the hospice and its financing.

Abu Libdeh said the hospice also receives donations from individuals, institutions, and countries directly through the Jordanian Ministry of Endowments or the Islamic Endowments Department.

22 years of service

Chef Jaber has been cooking for the poor throughout the year for about 22 years.

"We provide meals every day of the week except for Friday and Saturday. As for the month of Ramadan, we provide meals throughout the days of the month," said Jaber.

"During the month of Ramadan, we work two shifts. The first for the poor families, the other for the employees at Al-Aqsa Mosque — namely imams and guards," he said.

"On normal days, we provide meals for between 80-100 families," noted the chef. "In Ramadan, however, the quantities increase since many people from outside the city of Jerusalem come to Al-Aqsa Mosque, especially on Fridays and Saturdays."

The population of Palestinians in East Jerusalem is estimated to be 380,000.

In 2021, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said 75% of all Palestinian families, and 86% of Palestinian children, in Jerusalem live below the poverty line.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara