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Following a formal request by the United Arab Emirates and China, the United Nations Security Council will convene an emergency meeting to discuss Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s visit to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
A date has yet to be set for the Security Council session, which was reportedly called on behalf of the Palestinian and Jordanian UN missions. An unnamed senior diplomat told local media it could take place as early as Thursday.
Ben-Gvir, who has long advocated for Jewish rights at Judaism’s holiest site, briefly strolled the Temple Mount Tuesday morning. His 13-minute visit took place on the 10th of Tevet, a Jewish fast day mourning the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem 2,500 years ago, which resulted in the destruction of the First Temple.
The tour was held after an assessment with security and police officials, Ben-Gvir’s office said in a statement.
In the missive, the minister called the Temple Mount “the most important place for the Jewish people,” adding: “We maintain the freedom of movement for Muslims and Christians, but Jews should also have the freedom to go up to the mountain.”
Far from bucking the “status quo” on the Al Aqsa mosque compound/Temple Mount, @ItamarBenGvir’s visit appears to have reinforced it: He kept to the time slot and peripheral tour route allotted to Jews and avoided any sign of praying – or of advocating Jewish prayer – while there.
— Dan Williams (@DanWilliams) January 3, 2023
In keeping with the decades-old status quo at the flashpoint site, Ben-Gvir did not mention freedom of worship for Jews. Prime Minister Netanyahu on Tuesday similarly emphasized that “the claim that a change has been made in the status quo is without foundation.”
One of Ben-Gvir’s predecessors, Gilad Erdan, already visited the Temple Mount in 2017. Then-agriculture minister Uri Ariel did the same a year later.
Nevertheless, the newly-minted Netanyahu government has incurred wide international condemnation over Ben-Gvir’s actions, including from allies like the United States, the European Union, and Britain.
“Ambassador Nides has been very clear in conversations with the Israeli government on the issue of preserving the status quo in Jerusalem’s holy sites. Actions that prevent that are unacceptable,” the US embassy said in a statement.
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Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket at Israel Tuesday night, just hours after National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the flashpoint Temple Mount holy site in Jerusalem. The projectile fell short inside the Hamas-controlled enclave, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
“In accordance with standard operating procedures, an alert was not activated. Full routine continues on the Israeli home front,” the IDF noted. According to Palestinian media, Hamas officials arrested those responsible for launching the rocket.
Earlier this week, Israeli news outlets reported that Gaza’s ruling terror organization passed on a message to Jerusalem, warning that if Ben-Gvir followed through on his plan to ascend to Judaism’s holiest site, it would “blow up the situation.”
On Tuesday, Gaza’s ruling terror group called the visit a grave violation, adding that the struggle against the “settler-colonial occupation and its fascist extremist government will continue…until liberation and return.”
Ben Gvir's visit to the Temple Mount
A rocket was launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel and landed in the Gaza Strip pic.twitter.com/bdpEMuoc7B
— יוני בן מנחם yoni ben menachem (@yonibmen) January 4, 2023
The second-largest terror group in the Palestinian territory, Islamic Jihad, described Ben-Gvir’s 13-minute stroll as an act of aggression against Islam’s third-holiest place. “Al-Aqsa [the mosque on Temple Mount] does not belong to the Palestinians alone, and the attack on Al-Aqsa is not an attack on Palestinians alone,” commented spokesperson Nafez Azzam.
For his part, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in a televised speech, called on the international community to “rein in those crazy officials in Israel.” The secretary-general of the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group said that “harm against Al-Aqsa might blow up the entire region.”
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday vowed to wage an aggressive public campaign against efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal between the Iranian regime and world powers, which he claimed are still ongoing.
“Unfortunately, contrary to the popular opinion that this dangerous nuclear agreement has been scrapped, despite the recent events in Iran, I think that this possibility has not yet been definitively removed from the [global] agenda,” the PM said.
Netanyahu added: “Therefore, we will do everything to prevent the revival of this bad agreement that will lead to a nuclear Iran with international sponsorship.”
PM Netanyahu: "We are united on the security issue. We will work openly, from a position of strength, in the international arena against a return to the nuclear agreement
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) January 3, 2023
The possible restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — which saw Iran limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions — has been at the center of Israel’s security concerns over the past year and a half, with a concerned Jerusalem closely monitoring indirect negotiations in Vienna between Tehran and Washington.
In November, US President Joe Biden was taped saying that the Iran Deal is “dead,” but that he will not announce that publicly, adding that it was a “long story.” Yet two weeks ago, European Union representatives met with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in Jordan to discuss the possibility of renewing talks.
Since 2018, Iran has quickly ramped up its production of enriched uranium, surpassing the cap of 3.67 percent purity set by the original deal.
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US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will fly to Israel later this month, in what will be the first visit by a high-ranking Biden Administration official since the formation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government last week.
According to local media, Sullivan is expected to meet with the prime minister himself, as well as his Israeli counterpart Tzachi Hanegbi and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer. The key issues that will reportedly be discussed include Iran’s nuclear program and Palestinian terrorism originating from the West Bank.
Meanwhile, during a call with freshly-minted Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen this week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulated him on his new position and stressed America’s “abiding commitment” to Israel’s security.
“Blinken discussed continued US efforts to advance mutual interests such as Israel’s further regional integration, including through the Negev Forum; address shared challenges, including the threat from Iran; and promote the values that have been at the heart of the bilateral relationship for decades,” State Department Spokesperson Ned Price announced on Monday.
Blinken furthermore emphasized “the continued US commitment to a two-state solution and opposition to policies that endanger its viability,” the statement read.
Recommended Reading
- Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir Visits Temple Mount (Foundation for Defense of Democracies)
- Eight Wars and Peace Deals That Could Happen in 2023 (Seth J. Frantzman, Jerusalem Post)
- Does an Israeli Tourism Expert’s Saudi Arabia Trip Hint at Possibly Warming Ties? (Tal Schneider, Times of Israel)
- Israeli Professor Honored by Turkey’s Erdogan (Itamar Eichner, Ynetnews)
- In First, 11 Female Soldiers Pre-selected for Israeli Army’s 669 Unit (i24NEWS)
Featured Image: Temple Mount Administration
