The Israel Police officially bans members of Knesset from entering the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem.
The temporary ban, signed by acting Israel Police commissioner Bentzi Sau, says that visits by MKs to the flashpoint site — holy to both Jews and Muslims — “will exacerbate tensions on the Mount, tensions that will, with a high degree of probability, radiate and have an impact on the security situation throughout the country.”
The Israel Police ban, published on Twitter by Channel 2 correspondent Amit Segal, ratifies an earlier statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proscribing MKs from entering the Mount.
MK Basel Ghattas on the Temple Mount on October 28, 2015. (Courtesy: Joint List)
Netanyahu’s statement, which initially referred to Jewish lawmakers and then — when it faced stiff criticism — extended to Arab MKs, has been challenged by Arab opposition parliamentarians, apparently requiring police to step in and make the prime minister’s instructions official policy.
Palestinian accusations that Israel is seeking to change the arrangements at the Temple Mount and allow Jews to pray there have fueled recent unrest in Israel and the West Bank. Israel denies the allegations.
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