Israeli police recommend halting settler raids on Al-Aqsa complex

By Ibrahim Khazen and Gulsen Topcu

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli police have recommended halting settler intrusions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex during the last 10 days of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan amid tensions in occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli media reported on Sunday.

The police recommendation was presented to far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, according to daily Yedioth Ahronoth.

The idea, however, was rejected by Ben-Gvir, who said that halting the settler raids would mean “surrendering to terrorism.”

The far-right minister went on to call for keeping the Al-Aqsa complex open to Jewish settlers during the last 10 days of Ramadan.

Tensions escalated across Palestinian territories after Israeli forces stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem and forcibly removed worshippers on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Israeli raids on the mosque triggered rocket fire from the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, with Israel retaliating with air and artillery shelling.

Since 2003, Israel has allowed settlers into the flashpoint compound almost on a daily basis with the exception of Fridays and Saturdays.

For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third-holiest site. Jews, for their part, call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two ancient Jewish temples.

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

* Writing by Zehra Nur Duz in Ankara