Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has said he would build a synagogue in Masjid Al-Aqsa, sparking widespread condemnation from Muslim nations.
Ben-Gvir, who is an influential member of Benjamin Netanyahu’s regime, claimed that Jews have the right to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, in contravention of agreements that have stood since 1967.
“The policy allows for prayers on the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa Mosque). There is equal law for Jews and Muslims. I would build a synagogue there,” Ben-Gvir, the leader of the Jewish Power Party, told Israel’s Army Radio.
This is the first time the extremist minister has openly spoken about building a synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque. However, he has repeatedly called in recent months for allowing Jewish prayers at the site.
Ben-Gvir’s comments came amid repeated incursions into the complex by illegal Israeli settlers in full view of Israeli police who fall under the responsibility of the far-right minister.
They also came after the Israeli regime said it would finance for the first time the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque by illegal Israeli settlers.
According to the Israeli public broadcaster KAN, the office of Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu – an extremist minister known for being anti-Palestinian – will allocate $545,000 for the project which is expected to be implemented in the coming weeks.
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In response to Ben-Gvir’s repeated statements over the past few months, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed that the status quo at the Al-Aqsa Mosque remains unchanged.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is considered the third holiest site in Islam, but Jews refer to the area as the Temple Mount believing it to be the location of two ancient Jewish temples.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. In 1980, Israel annexed the entire city, a move that has never been recognised by the international community.
The status quo, in place since before the 1967 Israeli occupation, designates the Islamic Waqf in Jerusalem, under the Jordanian minister of Awqaf and Islamic affairs, as responsible for managing Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is a place of worship for Muslims only.
However, since 2003, Israeli police have unilaterally allowed illegal settlers to enter Al-Aqsa Mosque on weekdays, excluding Fridays and Saturdays, without the approval of the Islamic Waqf.
Ben-Gvir’s frequent incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque and his statements advocating Jewish prayers at the site have provoked a wave of condemnations from the Arab and Islamic world as well as the international community.
His actions have also upset Israeli religious parties that oppose these incursions due to the lack of ritual purity required for entering what Jews believe to be the site of the alleged temple.
‘Unacceptable provocation’
Meanwhile, Jordan on Monday condemned a call by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to build a synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.
In a statement, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry called his statement as “a violation of international law and an unacceptable provocation that requires a clear-cut international position condemning it.”
The statement added that Ben-Gvir’s statement “fuels extremism and endeavors to change the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and its holy sites through imposing new facts and practices driven by a bigoted exclusionary narrative.”
It stressed that the entire Al-Aqsa Mosque site is an exclusive place of worship for Muslims, and the Jordan-run Jerusalem Waqf Department is the legal entity supervising Al-Aqsa Mosque affairs.
The ministry affirmed that it will move international courts against the Israeli attacks on the holy sites.
In Türkiye, the Justice and Development (AK) Party condemned remarks by Israel’s national security minister on building a synagogue at the site of the al-Aqsa Mosque.
“Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s remarks about building a synagogue on the site where the al-Aqsa Mosque is located are a vile and cursed statement that attacks all Muslims and humanity,” Omer Celik said on X.
Calling the Al-Aqsa Mosque “our sacred value, the apple of our eye and our red line,” Celik said “members of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu’s network are also enemies of mosques and churches.”
“This network is responsible for daily provocations aimed at undermining regional peace,” he added.
“These are a network of genocide and massacre that is trying to drag the entire region into religious wars to save themselves from accountability before the law,” said Celik, urging the global community take a “clear” stance against members of Netanyahu’s government “who engage in provocative rhetoric regarding the status of Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
And Saudi Arabia on Tuesday condemned a statement by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir calling for building a synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem.
In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry categorically rejected these extremist and provocative statements.
The ministry also stressed “the need to respect the historical and legal status of Al-Aqsa Mosque,” and renewed its call on the international community to assume its responsibilities and put an end to the Palestinian humanitarian catastrophe.
