Jordan Calls on Israel to Stop 'Provocations' on Temple Mount
On Friday, Jewish activists were arrested for trying to enter the area in Jerusalem's Old City for a banned Passover sacrifice.
The Jordanian government has called on Israel to prevent the entry of Jewish visitors to the Al-Aqsa compound on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, hoping to stop tensions from escalating.
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On the Jordanian news agency’s website, government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani said such visits were a flagrant breach of international law and understandings reached between the various sides.
Al-Momani called on Israel’s cabinet to stop taking “provocative steps” and to let Palestinians pursue their freedom of worship at the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Jordan has made similar statements whenever reports increased of tensions on the Mount, which Muslims call the Noble Sanctuary.
On Friday, Jewish activists pushing for a Third Temple in Jerusalem tried to ascend the Mount carrying baby goats for use in Passover sacrifices, as they do every year. The police detained 10 suspects in the Old City for interrogation.
On Monday, the police removed two Jewish visitors from the Temple Mount for violating the site’s visitation rules; they were thought to be trying to pray there.
The police said 584 visitors had entered the Temple Mount on Monday morning, 453 of them tourists. On Sunday, 153 Jewish visitors entered the site; 13 were removed by the police.