Report: War cabinet sidelines Ben Gvir, rejects Ramadan Al Aqsa limits on Arab Israelis
Rejection follows Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh’s call for Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank to march to Al-Aqsa Mosque on the first day of holy month
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir will not be permitted to bar Arab Israelis from worshiping at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount on Ramadan, Israel’s war cabinet has ruled, according to a Hebrew media report Wednesday.
The Channel 12 report, which did not cite any specific sources, said the war cabinet — made up of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Minister Benny Gantz, as well as several other ministers who serve as observers — also decided that it would be the sole body to make decisions regarding policy at the flashpoint site. This would effectively sideline the far-right national security minister, who said in mid-February that Palestinian residents of the West Bank should be barred from attending prayers at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem during Ramadan. Ben Gvir is also reported to have sought to limit Arab Israeli visits.
Also on Wednesday, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh called on Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank to march to Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray on the first day of Ramadan on March 10, during the war in Gaza, seemingly seeking to raise tensions in the area.
Asked to respond to Haniyeh’s statement during a press conference, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller offered no comment, but clarified that the US will “continue to urge Israel to facilitate access to the Temple Mount for peaceful worshipers during Ramadan, consistent with past practice.”
“It’s not just the right thing to do,” Miller added. “It’s not just a matter of granting people religious freedom, which they deserve, but it’s also a matter that is directly important to Israel’s security. It is not in Israel’s security interests to enflame tensions.”
The Temple Mount is the holiest place in Judaism, where two biblical Temples once stood, and is the third-holiest site in Islam, making it a hot-button site in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Abraham Initiatives, a coexistence advocacy group that tracks violence in the Arab community, issued a letter to Police Chief Kobi Shabtai on Wednesday demanding that he give clear instructions regarding police conduct in Jerusalem toward worshipers on Ramadan and that these instructions be passed on to every officer in the area.
Police, according to Channel 12, will be tasked with determining the cap for Muslim worshipers at the compound based strictly on safety concerns.
As in years past, restrictions on specific worshipers will be determined strictly based on Shin Bet intelligence relating to security risks.
The Wednesday media report also said that 50,000 to 60,000 worshipers will be allowed at the site initially, and the number will be expanded if there are no security incidents.
Ben Gvir has been pushing for a more hardline approach to Gaza and the Palestinians in general, alongside Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, head of the Religious Zionism party. The two previously advocated for the resettlement of Palestinians outside of Gaza during the war and have also threatened to bolt the coalition if a “reckless” deal were reached with Hamas on releasing the hostages.
Earlier in February, a US official and an Israeli official told The Times of Israel that the Biden administration is highly concerned that Ben Gvir would try and spark tensions at the Temple Mount during Ramadan in what Washington fears could drag the flashpoint issue of Jerusalem into the Gaza conflict that it is seeking to contain.
Jacob Magid contributed to this report.
