Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir stated Feb. 17 that Israel should bar Palestinian residents of the West Bank from attending prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque/Temple Mount in Jerusalem during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which begins approximately March 11. “Ahead of the Ramadan preparation meeting that will be held tomorrow with the Prime Minister and the security service—I make my unequivocal position clear again. It is forbidden to allow residents from the PA to enter Israel in any way,” during Ramadan, he wrote on X. “We cannot take chances and risks.… It can’t be that women and children are hostages in Gaza and we allow Hamas victory celebrations on the Temple Mount,” reports the Feb. 18 Times of Israel.
First of all, the Al-Aqsa Mosque is not in Israel, and, by a treaty that Israel signed, Jordan, and not Israel, has authority over the grounds. Further, Israeli security officials have warned Ben-Gvir against his deliberate provocations with his past incendiary visits to the grounds during Ramadan. But, as a strategic matter, British oligarchical forces are presently attempting to manipulate Israeli forces and others in the region, and this proposal by Ben-Gvir, were it to be adopted, within the context of Israel’s genocidal invasion against Palestinians in Gaza, could be the trigger for a region-wide conflagration. The Al-Aqsa Mosque, located at the Temple Mount, is held by Muslims to be the third holiest site, after Mecca and Medina.
