Recently, Arab rioters have taken barricading themselves in the Al Aqsa Mosque in order to throw firebombs, rocks and debris at police in order to stop Jews from ascending. Netanyahu has long denied such intentions. Agricultural Minister Uri Ariel, who has said in the past that he wants to see the Third Temple built on the Mount, said that it was “unacceptable and incomprehensible to separate Jewish and Arab parliamentarians”, adding that he planned to speak to Netanyahu personally about the ban.
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Mr. Netanyahu on Wednesday barred Jewish members of parliament from entering the compound, known as Temple Mount to Jews and the Nobel Sanctuary to Muslims. But the Temple Mount is administered by the Islamic Waqf, a Muslim trust overseen by Jordan that limits non-Muslim visitation and bans Jewish prayer.
Rivlin criticized Palestinian incitement, in particular a recent statement from Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas, who called on Muslims to prevent Jews from “defiling” the Temple Mount with “their filthy feet”. Under this “status quo” agreement, non-Muslims are permitted to visit the site but not to pray there.
Rivlins comments come as weeks of violence continued to escalate in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and other parts of Israel. Israelis and Palestinians have been injured or killed. But the decision drew criticism from Israeli government ministers.
On Wednesday alone a series of terrorist attacks were carried out by Arab extremists, prompting Prime Minister Netanyahu to cancel his scheduled trip to Germany tomorrow and convene an emergency security cabinet meeting. “They are illegal according to global law, and I do not recognize them”, Arab parliament member Jamal Zahalka told the Israeli media site NRG.
Last month, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon signed a decree banning the Murabitun and Murabatat Islamist activist groups, which gather on the Temple Mount to disturb and intimidate Jewish visitors to the holy site on a daily basis.
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Israel Police have lifted restrictions on the access of Muslim worshippers on the Temple Mount.
