Israeli so-called National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir sparked an uproar on Monday after he declared that he would establish a synagogue atop Al-Aqsa Mosque if he could.
The extremist minister, who has made numerous provocative visits to the third-holiest site in Islam since he entered the government, told Army Radio on Monday that “Israeli law does not discriminate between the religious rights of Jews and Muslims” at Al-Aqsa (referred to by Jews as the “Temple Mount).
“The policies on the Temple Mount allow prayer, period,” Ben Gvir said. “You are allowed to pray; it’s illegal to prevent you from praying.”
“It’s not like I do everything I want on Temple Mount,” he added. “If I did everything I wanted on Temple Mount, the Israeli flag would have long been flying there.”
Asked if he would put a synagogue on the site if he could, he answered, “Yes, yes, yes, yes.”
The interview followed an incident earlier this month when Zionist settlersto the site were filmed — including in the background of footage shared by Ben Gvir — praying and prostrating themselves, in violation of the status quo governing the holy compound.
A similar public prayer event was held at Al-Aqsa on Sunday. The settlers were filmed prostrating themselves on the ground and performing provocative prayers loud.
Condemnations
Commenting on Ben Gvir’s remarks, Hamas resistance movement said the comments “represent a dangerous development and expose the Israeli occupation government’s criminal efforts to Judaize the A-Aqsa Mosque and tighten its control over it.”
In a statement, the Palestinian resistance group called on people in the occupied West Bank and occupied Al-Quds to mobilize at Al-Aqsa and escalate the struggle against Israeli occupation forces and Zionist settlers.
In the same context, Hamas said Arab and Muslim nation must bear the responsibility of defending the holy mosque.
For his part, Imam and preacher of Al-Aqsa Sheikh Akram Sabri said that Ben Gvir’s “plans failed, and now he wants to blow up the situation to prove that he did something.”
⚡️Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, Imam and preacher of Al-Aqsa:
“Ben Gvir has no legitimate claim to a Jewish right in Al-Aqsa. We reaffirm the Islamic identity of Al-Aqsa and warn against approaching it. pic.twitter.com/QbzbbcHjM0
— War Analysis (@iiamguri9) August 26, 2024
The Muslim scholar stressed that the Israeli minister “has no argument for what he claims about the so-called Jews’ right to Al-Aqsa.”
“We emphasize the Islamic identity of Al-Aqsa and warn against tampering with it,” Sheikh Sabri said, as quoted by Palestinian media.
Source: Palestinian and Israeli media (edited and translated by Al-Manar English Website)
