Jordan accuses Ben Gvir of ‘violating sanctity’ of Temple Mount site with visit

Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visits the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on July 18, 2024. (Otzma Yehudit)
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visits the Temple Mount in Jerusalem on July 18, 2024. (Otzma Yehudit)

After National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visits the Temple Mount, Jordan accuses him of “violating the sanctity” of the site, which it maintains is “a flagrant and unacceptable violation of international law and the existing historical and legal situation in Jerusalem.”

Jordan views itself as a custodian of the Temple Mount and Jerusalem’s Muslim and Christian sites — a status Israel does not recognize, though it acknowledged the kingdom’s “special role” at the site in the countries’ peace treaty. Jordan in 1994 became the second Arab country to recognize and sign a peace treaty with neighboring Israel, after Egypt.

Amman regularly puts out condemnations when Israeli officials visit the Temple Mount.

Jordanian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Sufyan Qudah says that the entire Haram Al-Sharif, the Muslim name for the site, is a purely Muslim site, and argues that Israel has no sovereignty over Jerusalem or its holy sites.

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