PLO leader threatens Israel with Muslim violence over metal detectors on Temple Mount
[PLO] leader Rami Hamdallah on Tuesday … said that Israel, as the “occupying power”, is responsible for the current escalation in Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, according to comments carried by the Wafa news agency.
Hamdallah warned of the “grave consequences” of Israel’s recent measures at Al-Aqsa Mosque, starting with its closure following last week’s terrorist attack, banning the call for prayer from its mosques, police desecration of the mosques, assaulting staff and latest the installation of metal detectors at the entrances to the holy compound.
“The entire world should know that Israel, as the occupying power, does not have any lawful authority over Jerusalem and its Muslim and Christian holy places,” he continued, stressing that all Israeli alterations on the character and status of Jerusalem are null and void.
Hamdallah called upon the international community and the Arab and Muslim countries to “shoulder their responsibilities and put a stop to Israeli violations against Al-Aqsa Mosque and to provide international protection for our people and holy places.”
His comments come in response to Israel’s decision, following Friday’s attack, to place magnetometers (advanced metal detectors which are selective in which metals they react to) and additional security cameras around the entrances to the holy site.
The new security measures prompted an outcry from the Jordanian Waqf and the Jordanian government, which demanded a return to the “status quo”.
On Monday, Mahmoud Al-Habbash, an advisor to PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas on religious affairs, blasted the security measures taken by Israel, saying they constitute a blatant violation of the conventions and decisions of international institutions regarding the status of Jerusalem and its holy sites.
According to him, the exclusive sovereignty over the entire Temple Mount belongs to the Islamic Waqf.
