Security minister Ben Gvir says Israel ‘in charge’ in controversial Temple Mount visit
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May 21 (UPI) — Israel’s security minister Itamar Ben Gvir is drawing criticism following a visit to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on Sunday and remarks that encourage breaking a more than half-century-old agreement.
Ben Gvir has been a proponent for allowing Jewish prayer at the holy site, according to The Guardian. An arrangement following the Six-Day War in 1967 prohibits Jews from praying there.
Known as the Temple Mount in Judaism and Christianity, the holy site is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque — one of Islam’s holiest mosques believed to be where the prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque has been under the administration of the Kingdom of Jordan and the site of recent clashes between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli forces.
Judaism and Christianity also hold the hill the mosque sits on, known as the Temple Mount, as one of their holiest sites where a great temple is believed to have been built by King Solomon in biblical and Jewish texts.
The visit comes just days after Jerusalem Day, an Israeli national holiday that celebrates the reunification of East and West Jerusalem. More than 1,000 people visited the site in celebration, Ben Gvir claimed in a tweet on Thursday.
“I am glad to ascend the Temple Mount, the most important place for the nation of Israel,” Ben Gvir said. “Police are doing wonderful work here and again giving a reminder of who the master of the house is in Jerusalem. All of Hamas’s threats won’t help. We are the masters of Jerusalem and all of the land of Israel.”
Officials from Jordan, Palestine and Turkey rebuked the visit, saying it violated international arrangements and could further escalate tensions in the region.
The United States also issued a statement of concern over the “provocative visit” and “accompanying inflammatory rhetoric.”
“This holy space should not be used for political purposes, and we call on all parties to respect its sanctity.” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in the statement. “More broadly, we reaffirm that longstanding U.S. Position in support of the historic status quo at Jerusalem’s holy sites and underline Jordan’s special role as custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem.”
Nabil Abu, spokesman for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, called it a “flagrant attack on al-Aqsa,” The Jerusalem Post reported.
Rising calls for Jewish prayer at the Temple Mount have reportedly increased fears of an Israeli takeover of the holy site.
To circumvent the ban of Jewish prayer, Ben Gvir read prayers from his mobile device, rather than from a prayer book. This has become more common as enforcement of the Jewish prayer prohibition has relaxed in recent years.