Tension high amid plans to restrict access to Al Aqsa
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to restrict access for Muslims at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan, according to Israeli media reports, with many fearing the measures could provoke widespread violence amid already high tensions.
Mr Netanyahu endorsed recommendations from National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to limit the number of Arab-Israeli worshippers who will be given access the site, Israeli media reported on Sunday.
Al Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam and a central flashpoint in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
Prayer at the mosque, particularly during Ramadan, is deeply important to many Palestinians and Israeli police restrictions on access to the site have led to violence on several occasions.
Following reports by major Israeli outlets, the Prime Minister’s office issued a vague counterstatement that promised a “balanced decision that allows freedom of religion with necessary security limits, which have been set by professional officials”.
“Any other report is incorrect,” the statement added.
Israeli police have imposed restrictions on who can access the compound since the start of the war in Gaza. These initially limited access to Al Aqsa for Friday prayers to people older than 70 but they were recently relaxed.
Mr Ben-Gvir is pushing for similar age restrictions to be imposed over Ramadan but security services oppose his suggestions, according to the Israeli media reports. Palestinians from the occupied West Bank have been barred entirely from entering Israel since the war began.
This has taken a devastating economic toll on the Palestinian economy, given the many thousands of people who normally travel and work in Israel.
Political analyst Nihad Abughosh warned that if Palestinians from the West Bank were barred from visiting Al Aqsa, the situation could deteriorate swiftly. “If this crisis is not resolved, it will lead to some kind of explosion because Ramadan is a very, very sensitive time,” he told The National.
“There is a natural law about accumulation of pressure on people where you just reach a point where you explode.
“So it’s going to be very difficult.”
He said the ban would lead to a serious deterioration in an already highly tense atmosphere between illegal Israeli settlers and Palestinians.
Mr Ben-Gvir has long argued that Israel should have total control of Al Aqsa compound.
The site is highly revered in Judaism.
The far-right minister is a settler and has long advocated Israel seizing control of Al Aqsa Mosque compound and annexing the West Bank, both areas he views as integral parts of a biblical Jewish state.
Despite widespread denunciation from the international community, he has also visited the site on several
One expert warned that if Palestinians are barred from Al Aqsa, the situation could swiftly deteriorate
occasions during his ministerial career, breaching the long-standing agreement whereby the Jordanian religious institution, the Jerusalem Waqf, has authority in the area.
Many Israeli politicians have opposed Mr Ben-Gvir’s recommendations, stressing the need for policies that do not inflame tensions during the holy month.
War cabinet minister Benny Gantz, who joined Mr Netanyahu’s government during the war, said while there will be some restrictions on prayer over Ramadan given the “security situation”, a definite list had “yet to be decided”.
“Security forces will finalise their recommendations in accordance with the latest situation assessments and will subsequently be presented to the political echelon for decision-making,” he said.