With this act, he violated a long -term agreement that forbids the Jews at this most sacred place.
Israeli far right -wing Minister of National Security ITamar Ben Gvir visited the Temple Mount on Sunday, where he and his pilgrims prayed. He thus violated the long -term status quo, which prohibits Jews praying at this point. The Minister also called on the conquest of the whole Gaza band and the destruction of the Palestinian militant movement Hamas. According to Reuters and Times of Israel, TASR reports this.
The Temple Mountain, which also houses the Al-Aksá Mosque, is the most sacred place of Judaism and the third most sacred site of Islam. Based on a long -time agreement between Jewish and Muslim officials, the complex is managed by the Jordanian religious WAKF Foundation. Jews can visit the mountain, but they cannot pray there.
Visit during the holiday
Ben Gvir Temple Mountain on Sunday visited Tisha Be-AV, which Jews commemorate the destruction of two ancient Jewish temples, which stood in the same place in antiquity. The WAKF Foundation said the Israeli Minister completed the complex together with 1,250 pilgrims.
Ben Gvir said in his statement that he prayed for the victory of Israel over Hamas and the return of Israeli hostages that militants are detained there. Israel again called on to conquer the whole Palestinian enclave and declare sovereignty over it. “This is the only way we can free hostages and win the war,” he said.
Reactions of Palestine and Jordan
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in response that Ben Gvir’s visit “crossed all the red lines”. In a similar vein, the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which identified his actions as “unacceptable provocation and escalation, as well as flagrant violations of international law and historical status quo”.
The Israeli government officially respects the status quo, which prohibits the Jews praying at the Temple Mount. However, Ben Gvir openly requires a change in these rules. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had to declare in the past after his minister’s visits that it was not an official position of Israel.
