Israel wants to give Muslims access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem again this year during the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. ““In the first week of Ramadan, believers will be allowed to enter the Temple Mount in similar numbers to previous years,” the Israeli government said on Tuesday. In the following week, the number of believers will be adjusted to the security situation.
“Taking into account the security conditions, we will do everything we can to ensure the free exercise of religion on the Temple Mount and to allow Muslims to celebrate (Ramadan),” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the start of a session on Ramadan.
The Muslim month of fasting begins on March 10th or 11th this year. Normally, tens of thousands of believers pray in the area around the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Given the tense security situation following the unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel on October 7th and the resulting war in the Gaza Strip, Israel fears riots on Jerusalem's Temple Mount during Ramadan.
The right-wing extremist minister for national security, Itamar Ben Gvir, had called for Palestinians to be completely banned from entering Jerusalem to pray. “We cannot take any risks,” he said. Hamas then spoke of a “religious war by the minister against the Palestinian people.” Hamas leader Ismail Haniya, who lives in Qatar, called on the Palestinians to turn out en masse at the start of Ramadan. to flock to the Aksa Mosque.
The US called on Israel to allow Muslims easier access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque during the important month of fasting.
For Muslims, the hill with the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site after Mecca and Medina. Jordan manages these Islamic shrines, but Israel regulates access to the Temple Mount and can decide on the number of believers.
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