Hamas threatens Israel over extremists’ plans to bring sacrifice on Temple Mount; Israel: It’s not going to happen

The Hamas terror group threatens Israel over plans by Jewish activists to conduct ritual sacrifices on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, saying it will not allow it “at any cost.”

The “Returning to the Mount” extremist group, which advocates the construction of a third temple, announces on Facebook that it will be offering a cash prize to those who succeed in sacrificing a lamb on the Temple Mount, as well as to those who are arrested in the process.

“Arrested? NIS 400. Arrested with a goat/lamb? NIS 800. Managed to sacrifice? NIS 10,000,” the post reads.

Hamas has issued several statements on the matter in the past week, and in a new one this morning it says: “We stress that our people will not allow this at any cost.”

“We stress that this represents a dangerous escalation that crosses all red lines, as it is a direct assault on the belief and feelings of our people and our nation during this holy month,” Hamas says, referring to the month of Ramadan.

The Palestinian Authority and Jordan have also condemned the plans.

But Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s Arabic-language spokesperson is quick to respond, stating that no such plans will be allowed to go ahead.

“Allegations that there are Jews intending to slaughter sacrifices on Haram al-Sharif are completely false and have been promoted by Palestinian terror organizations and others in order to incite,” Ofir Gendelman writes on Twitter.

“We will preserve the status quo in the holy places and will not allow any disturbance to security and public order, in Jerusalem or anywhere else,” he adds.

Police say attempts to sacrifice lambs on the Temple Mount occur every year as zealots challenge longstanding restrictions by attempting to perform sacrifices in the spot in Jerusalem’s Old City where the ancient Temples once stood.