Ben-Gvir says he will build synagogue at Al-Aqsa Mosque compound: Report
Israeli Army Radio reports quoting far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir that he will build a synagogue at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City.
Jews refer to the compound as the Temple Mount, and some believe that it is where the first and second ancient Jewish temples once stood.
Gantz says no change in historic status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque
The head of the opposition National Unity alliance says “despite the provocative and irresponsible rhetoric by some, Israel is committed to preserving this historic status and has no intention on changing it”.
“The freedom of worship will always be guaranteed at the holy site,” he added in a post on X.
Gantz said he expects little from PM Netanyahu “who allowed an irresponsible arsonist to bring us down into an abyss in exchange for political peace”, apparently referring to National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
“But there are responsible parties in the government and coalition who are expected to do something,” he stressed, adding: “Condemnations and nice words won’t suffice here, and history will judge you for being part of this dangerous endeavor.”
Israel’s Lapid slams Netanyahu for tolerating Ben-Gvir
Opposition leader Yair Lapid condemned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for keeping the far-right politician in the government. “The whole region sees Netanyahu’s weakness against Ben-Gvir,” Lapid said on X.
“He can’t control the government even when it comes to a clear attempt to destabilise our national security. There is no policy, no strategy, no government really,” he said.
Palestine ministry condemns Ben-Gvir’s plans for Al-Aqsa Mosque
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has condemned the Israeli national security minister’s promise to build a synagogue in the holy site and the compound’s storming by Israeli settlers who also performed Jewish rituals.
Itamar Ben-Gvir is trying to push the region towards a state of “perpetual conflict” and is undermining regional and international efforts to end the war on Gaza and the “genocide” of Palestinians, the ministry added in a statement.
“The ministry holds the Israeli government fully and directly responsible for the consequences of this incitement by Ben-Gvir and others like him, particularly in turning the conflict zone into a cycle of violence that is difficult to control and may never end,” it said, calling on the Arab and Muslim nations to act.
Israel’s Ben-Gvir calls for ‘decisive war’ with Hezbollah, takes aim at defence minister
The national security and defence ministers of Israel are publicly attacking each other again amid the latest disagreements over handling the fallout of the war on Gaza.
Yoav Gallant, the defence minister, said in a post on X that changing the status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque would be a “dangerous, unnecessary and irresponsible act” after the far-right security chief, Itamar Ben-Gvir, promised he would build a synagogue there.
Gallant said Ben-Gvir’s actions endanger Israel’s national security and its international status, also defending the “pre-emptive strikes” and other bombings of Lebanon that Israel carried out on Sunday.
Ben-Gvir punched back in a post on X, saying Gallant “bows down to Hamas and drags” Israel into a bad Gaza ceasefire deal while pursuing a “defeatist” policy against Hezbollah.
“Israel must not be content with a single pre-emptive strike, we must bring a decisive war against Hezbollah that will remove the threat in the north and allow the residents to return home safely,” he wrote.
