Netanyahu would have postponed an official trip to the UAE due to international criticism, according to an Israeli media
3 Jan. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Several Arab and Muslim countries have criticized on Tuesday the visit to the Esplanade of the Mosques by the new Minister of National Security of Israel, Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the far-right party Otzma Yehudit, which they have described as a provocation.
The secretary general of the Arab League, Ahmed Abul Gheit, has said in a statement that he condemns “in the strongest terms” the visit and the “desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque”. Thus, he has said that it is “a provocation and contempt for the religious sentiments” of Muslims.
He has affirmed that “this flagrant incursion comes in the context of the start of the application of an extremist and settlement program by the Government of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu)” and has warned that it “poses a great danger” for the situation “in Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied (Palestinian) territories”.
Abul Gheit has stressed that “the Netanyahu government bears full responsibility for Ben Gvir’s act and extremist practices,” before adding that it could have “repercussions for world peace.”
The Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has expressed itself in this vein, which has “strongly” criticized the “incursion of the Israeli extremist Ben Gvir into the Al Aqsa mosque complex, with the protection of the Israel Defense Forces “.
In this sense, he has said that this act “goes against the feelings of Muslims and is a flagrant violation of relevant international resolutions.” “The OIC holds the Israel Defense Forces — the Israeli Army — fully responsible for the repercussions of Israel’s continued and daily aggression against Jerusalem, including its people and its holy sites,” he said.
“The OIC calls on the international community to assume its responsibility to stop these Israeli violations, which could unleash a religious conflict, extremism and instability in the region,” he said through a series of messages on his account on the Twitter social network.
The Government of Saudi Arabia has also criticized Ben Gvir’s visit and has warned that “the practices of the Israeli occupation authorities undermine peace efforts and contradict international principles and standards on holy places.”
The Saudi Foreign Ministry has indicated in a statement on its Twitter social network account that it supports “all efforts aimed at ending the occupation and achieving a just and comprehensive solution” to achieve “the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as the capital”.
The criticism has been joined by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has said that it “firmly condemns the irruption of an Israeli minister in the courtyard of the Al Aqsa mosque under the protection of Israeli forces.”
The Emirati Foreign Ministry has called for “total protection of the Al Aqsa Mosque” and “an end to the serious and provocative violations that take place there”, while asking to respect Jordan’s role as custodian.
For this reason, it has asked Israel to “assume responsibility when it comes to reducing tensions and instability in the region” and has shown its rejection of “illegal practices that threaten the two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital”.
According to information collected by the Israeli television channel Channel 12, Netanyahu has canceled an official visit that he planned to make in the coming days to the UAE, a decision taken shortly after Ben Gvir’s visit and in the face of international criticism.
Turkey has also charged Ben Gvir for his “provocative act” and has called on Israel “to act responsibly to avoid this type of provocation, which violates the status and sanctity of the holy places in Jerusalem and increases tensions in the region”.
NETANYAHU COMES OUT OF CRITICISM
Ben Gvir’s visit to the Esplanade of the Mosques has also been criticized by the United States and France, which have called for maintaining the ‘status quo’, as well as by the Palestinian Authority, which has warned of the danger of this type of action.
Shortly before, Jordan, which acts as custodian of the site, stated that Ben Gvir’s visit “represents an unacceptable violation” of the “historical and legal situation in Jerusalem and its holy places”, before noting that the Israeli government “has full responsibility for the consequences” that may derive from the actions of the leader of Otzma Yehudit.
Faced with criticism, Netanyahu has stressed his commitment to maintaining the ‘status quo’ in the Esplanade of the Mosques. Thus, he has indicated that he will work to “strictly protect the ‘status quo’ on the Temple Mount – the name by which the Jews know the place -, without changes”, according to the newspaper ‘The Times of Israel’.
Israel took control of the Temple Mount and the rest of the Old City of Jerusalem during the Six Day War (1967). However, it allowed Jordan to continue to maintain religious authority at the site and, under the peace agreement, recognized Jordan’s “special role” over “Muslim holy places in Jerusalem.”
Israel considers Jerusalem its “indivisible” capital, although the status of the city is pending a peace agreement with the Palestinian authorities, who claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a state on the 1967 borders as part of a peace settlement. two states backed by the international community, which also calls for no changes to the ‘status quo’.
The ‘status quo’ in the Esplanade of the Mosques prevents Jews from praying in the Esplanade of the Mosques and only authorizes them to visit the place at predetermined times and to travel through a fixed route, accompanied by policemen who must ensure that the faithful do not pray or introduce Israeli flags or Jewish religious objects.
