Israel`s new security minister visited Jerusalem holy site, the Muslim world strongly condemned it
RELIGIONS NEWS AGENCY (REDNA) – Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israel`s new security minister visited the Jerusalem holy site on Tuesday and the Muslim world angrily condemned the it.
The US, as the Independent reported, also strongly criticized the visit.
The site houses the al-Aqsa mosque, revered in Islam, and the ancient biblical temples that are the holiest site in Judaism.
Itamar Ben-Gvir supports illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called on Palestinians to “confront the raids into al-Aqsa mosque”.
He accused Mr Ben-Gvir of staging the visit as part of a bid to turn the shrine “into a Jewish temple”.
The leader of Lebanon’s powerful armed Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, said that any infringement of the decades-long status quo at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem could lead to an explosion in the region, not just inside Palestinian territories.
Since Israel captured the site in 1967, Jews have been allowed to visit the site but not pray there. Palestinians consider the mosque a national symbol and view such visits as provocative and as a potential precursor to Israel seizing control over the compound.
Mr Ben-Gvir once advocated ending the ban on Jewish prayer at the site, but has been more non-committal on the issue since aligning with Israel’s PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
US ambassador Tom Nides said he had “been very clear” to Israel “on the issue of preserving the status quo in Jerusalem’s holy sites. Actions that prevent that are unacceptable”.
The United Arab Emirates, which established full diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020, called on Israel to “halt serious and provocative violations taking place there”.
Saudi Arabia condemned Mr Ben-Gvir’s action, as did statements from Kuwait and Qatar, while Turkey urged Israel to “to act responsibly”, saying such visits could “cause an escalation in the region”.
Jordan, which acts as custodian of the contested shrine, condemned Mr Ben-Gvir’s visit “in the strongest terms” and summoned Israel’s ambassador to lodge a protest.
Describing the Temple Mount as “the most important place for the Jewish people”, Mr Ben-Gvir decried what he called “racist discrimination” against Jewish visits to the site. With the Dome of the Rock in the background and waving his fingers at the camera, he said the visits would continue.
“The Israeli government won’t surrender to a murderous organisation, to a vile terrorist organisation,” he said in a video clip, in apparent reference to Hamas.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said Mr Ben-Gvir’s visit was “a continuation of the Zionist’s occupation aggression on our sacred places and war on our Arab identity”.
Mr Netanyahu later insisted Israel remains committed to “strictly maintaining the status quo” at the site.
Mr Ben-Gvir is head of the ultranationalist religious Jewish Power faction and has a history of inflammatory remarks and actions against Palestinians. He was once convicted of incitement and supporting a Jewish terrorist group, but in his new job now commands Israel’s police force.