Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir claimed on Monday, 26 August 2024 that Jews have the right to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem.
“I would build a synagogue at the flashpoint site”, Ben-Gvir said.
“The policy allows for prayers on the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa Mosque). There is equal law for Jews and Muslims. I would build a synagogue there,” Ben-Gvir told Israel’s Army Radio.
This is the first time for the extremist minister to openly speak about building a synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque. However, he has repeatedly called in recent months for allowing Jewish prayers at the site.
The status quo, in place since before the 1967 Israeli occupation, designates the Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem, under the Jordanian minister of Awqaf and Islamic affairs, as responsible for managing Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is a place of worship for Muslims only.
However, since 2003, Israeli police have unilaterally allowed illegal settlers to enter Al-Aqsa Mosque on weekdays, excluding Fridays and Saturdays, without the approval of the Islamic Waqf.
Ben-Gvir’s frequent incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque and his statements advocating Jewish prayers at the site have provoked a wave of condemnations from the Arab and Islamic world as well as the international community.
Illegal settlers repeated violations of Muslim, as well as
Christian, symbols as a deliberate attempt to Judaise the occupied Jerusalem, with the progressive expulsion of the local population; the Palestinians.
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