Muslim plan to bring Jews to Temple Mount

AN UNUSUAL offer has been extended to Israel as it marks the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War and the reunification of Jerusalem.

Sheikh Azzam al-Khatib al-Tamimi, the head of the Waqf, the Muslim custodians of Temple Mount in Jerusalem, has called on the Israeli government to restore the status quo in place before 2000 — an arrangement hammered out after the Six-Day War.

Mr Al-Tamimi said restoration of the agreement — which was broken in September 2000 when Ariel Sharon controversially toured the Temple Mount — would allow anyone to visit the compound, which Muslims call Haram al-Sharif. Jews could again visit the mosques and the Dome of the Rock, but “everyone must realise they are visiting a mosque, with no rights for Jews to pray inside”, Mr Al-Tamimi said.

Between 1967 and 2000, Israel police secured the gates to the compound while the Waqf operated the site, selling tickets to non-Muslims.

The Waqf seeks to regain overall management of the complex, and the revenue streams that come with it.

The proposal comes amid heightened tensions on Temple Mount, with repeated claims by Arab leaders that Israel is making life intolerable for Muslim worshippers.

It is not thought Israel will respond positively to the offer because it believes that Israeli police can handle the way people visit the Temple Mount without more involvement from the Waqf.

Meanwhile, a decision was made in a special Cabinet meeting held at the Western Wall tunnels on Sunday to install lifts from the Jewish Quarter down to the Kotel.

As well as the lifts, intended to be in place by 2021, there are plans for a cable car link from an old railway station in West Jerusalem to Dung Gate in the Old City, close to the entrance to the Wall.

The Cabinet meeting was held at the Wall to mark Israel’s capture of the Old City from Jordan 30 years ago. But the construction plans have been condemned by the Waqf as yet another attempt by Israel to expand the Jewish presence at the Temple Mount area.