New York –
The United Nations Security Council to meet to discuss the visit of the Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir to the mosque Al-Aqsa. The visit was controversial and angered Palestinians.
Reported by AFP extension, the meeting will take place on Thursday (5/1/2023), at the United Nations headquarters in New York, at 15.00 local time. The 15-nation security council will meet at the request of the UAE and China.
There are fears that Tuesday’s visit by Israel’s new national security minister, instigator Itamar Ben-Gvir, could spark war.
Masjid Al-Aqsa it is located in Israel-annexed East Jerusalem and is the third holiest site in Islam. It is the holiest place for the Jews, who call it the Temple Mount.
Under the old status quo, non-Muslims could visit the site at certain times, but could not pray there.
In recent years, an increasing number of Jews, most of them Israeli nationalists, have been praying silently at the compound. The situation has been criticized by the Palestinians.
Ben-Gvir’s visit sparked a wave of international condemnation, including from the United States, Israel’s longtime ally.
Ben-Gvir visits Al-Aqsa
An ultra-nationalist and far-right Israeli minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, visited the Al-Aqsa mosque compound on Tuesday (3/1) local time. This will be Ben-Gvir’s first visit since he took office in the government led by Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu.
As AFP reported on Tuesday (3/1/2023), Ben-Gvir’s visit angered Palestinians, who saw the visit as a provocation. The Hamas militant group that controls the Gaza Strip also warned Ben-Gvir of his visit.
“Our government will not succumb to threats from Hamas,” Ben-Gvir said in a statement released by his spokesman, after the militant group Hamas warned the visit was a “red line”.
(aik/aik)
