The recent visit of the Israeli Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem has drawn global condemnation, with Western powers asking the Israeli government to halt deliberate provocations.
Ben-Gvir on Tuesday visited the Al-Aqsa mosque compound and said Jews should be allowed to pray there, freshly challenging rules covering one of the most sensitive sites in the Middle East.
British Foreign Minister, David Lammy, on Wednesday condemned Minister Ben-Gvir’s deliberately provocative visit to Jerusalem’s Holy Sites.
“Such actions undermine the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan’s role as custodian of the sites and the long-standing Status Quo arrangements,” Lammy wrote on X.
The German foreign ministry in a post on social media platform X also said “We reject unilateral steps that jeopardise the historical status quo of the holy sites in Jerusalem.”
In Washington, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a statement blasting Ben-Gvir’s visit to the site.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry called Ben-Gvir’s action “a provocation to the feelings of Muslims around the world, especially in light of the continuing war and acts of violence against defenceless Palestinians.”
Josep Borrell, the European Union’s high commissioner for foreign affairs, also put out a statement “strongly” criticising “the provocations” by Ben-Gvir.
France’s foreign ministry decried Ben-Gvir’s defiance of a “long-standing ban on Jewish prayer at the Al-Aqsa Mosque,” urging Israel to respect the status quo. “This new provocation is unacceptable,” the French ministry said.
Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu quickly denied there would be any change to rules prohibiting Jews from praying at the site, which is holy to Muslims as well. He also issued a rebuke to Ben-Gvir, head of one of the nationalist religious parties in the ruling coalition.
The row with Ben-Gvir was the second time this week that Netanyahu has clashed with one of his senior ministers, following a sharp reprimand issued to Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Monday over the aims of the Gaza war.
The Al-Aqsa compound is administered by a Jordanian religious foundation and under rules dating back decades, Jews are allowed to visit, but may not pray there.
The Waqf, the foundation that administers the site, said around 2,250 Jews entered the site on Tuesday.
The spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denounced Ben-Gvir’s visit as a “provocation” and called on the US to intervene “if it wants to prevent the region from exploding in an uncontrollable manner.” (The Arab Weekly)
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