Turkey on Thursday condemned the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem by an Israeli minister accompanied by settlers, warning that the move could further inflame tensions around one of Islam’s holiest sites.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the act violated the historic and legal status of Al-Aqsa Mosque as a Muslim holy site and called on the international community to prevent violations in occupied East Jerusalem and against its holy sites.
The statement did not name the minister, but Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency identified him as Yitzhak Wasserlauf, Israel’s minister for the Negev and Galilee and a member of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Anadolu, citing Palestinian sources, said Wasserlauf stormed the compound Wednesday, two days before the anniversary of Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem according to the Hebrew calendar.
Jordan also condemned the incursion, saying the minister entered Al-Aqsa under police protection and calling the act a violation of the site’s historic and legal status.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Muslims as Al-Haram Al-Sharif and to Jews as the Temple Mount, is administered by a Jordanian religious foundation. Under the long-standing status quo, Jews may enter the compound but are not allowed to pray there.