Ben-Gvir’s call to build synagogue at Al-Aqsa ‘to drag region into religious war’: Palestine

RAMALLAH, Palestine

Palestine denounced a call by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Monday to build a synagogue inside Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem as an attempt to drag the region into a “religious war.”

“The Palestinian people will not accept any harm to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is a red line that cannot be crossed under any circumstances,” Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in a statement carried by the official news agency Wafa.

“These calls to alter the status of the Al-Aqsa Mosque are attempts to drag the region into a religious war that will burn all,” he added.

Abu Rudeineh urged the international community, especially the US, to immediately intervene “to restrain the Israeli extreme right-wing government and compel it to adhere to the prevailing legal and historical status of the holy site.”

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry warned of grave consequences from Ben-Gvir’s call to build a synagogue at the flashpoint site.

“This is an explicit and public call to demolish Al-Aqsa and build the alleged temple in its place,” a ministry statement said.

It held the Israeli government fully responsible for the consequences of Ben-Gvir's incitement that would push the region into a spiral of violence that is difficult to control.

Ben-Gvir claimed Monday that Jews have the right to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque, saying that he would build a synagogue at the flashpoint site.

It was the first time for the Israeli minister to openly speak about building a synagogue inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque. However, he has repeatedly called in recent months for allowing Jewish prayers at the site.

His call came amid repeated incursions into the complex by illegal Israeli settlers, in full view of Israeli police who fall under the responsibility of the far-right minister.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is considered the third holiest site in Islam. Jews refer to the area as the Temple Mount, believing it to be the location of two ancient Jewish temples.

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

Israel has faced international condemnation over its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip that killed over 40,000 people since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio