Hamas calls for Arab, Islamic action after Ben-Gvir’s call for Jews to pray at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa

By Mohamed Majid

JERUSALEM (AA) – Hamas condemned on Wednesday Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for allowing illegal Jewish settlers to pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem.

In a statement, the Palestinian resistance group called for an Arab and Islamic action to protect the flashpoint holy site.

“Our Palestinian people, who have stood against all attempts to desecrate and Judaize Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque on behalf of the entire nation, will continue to defend Al-Aqsa,” Hamas said in a statement.

It called for “comprehensive Arab and Islamic action to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Ben-Gvir said early Wednesday that he gave his permission for illegal Jewish settlers to pray at the site.

“I am the political echelon, and the political echelon permits prayer at the Temple Mount (Al-Aqsa Mosque),” he said in a speech at the Knesset (Israel’s parliament).

According to the Israeli public broadcaster KAN, Ben-Gvir’s statement represents an embarrassment to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is currently visiting Washington.

Ben-Gvir, leader of the far-right Jewish Power Party, is responsible for the police, who are tasked with preventing Jews from performing Talmudic rituals during their incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Last month, Netanyahu claimed that the status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque "has not changed and will not change," after Ben-Gvir urged Jews to pray "publicly" at the complex.

The status quo allows Muslims to worship at the Al-Aqsa complex and followers of other religions to visit the site.

For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents Islam’s third-holiest site. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980, a move never recognized by the international community.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio