Jordan condemns Israeli extremist attacks at Al Aqsa

AMMAN — Jordan on Monday condemned the continual and accelerating raids at Al Aqsa Mosque/Al Haram Al Sharif perpetrated by Israeli extremists under the protection of Israeli occupation forces, according to a Foreign Ministry statement. 

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Haitham Abul Foul, in a ministry statement, said that the increasing pace of attacks and the accompanying provocations at Al Aqsa Mosque/Al Haram Al Sharif and surrounding Islamic cemeteries as well as the restriction of worshippers' access to the mosque all represent a clear violation of international law and the existing historical and legal status quo.

Abul Foul stressed that the ongoing attacks on holy sites represent a dangerous trend towards further escalation, the repercussions of which “will affect all”. 

The spokesperson reiterated that Al Aqsa Mosque/Al Haram Al Sharif, with a total area of 144 dunums, is a place of worship for Muslims alone, and that the Jerusalem Awqaf and Aqsa Affairs Department, run by Jordan, has the exclusive authority to supervise the holy site’s affairs and entries. 

He also called on Israel, as an occupying force, to immediately stop all violations at Al Aqsa Mosque, and respect its sanctity. 

The spokesperson also reiterated the importance of halting all procedures that threaten the historical and legal status quo and impose a temporal and spatial division, stressing the need to respect the authority of the Jerusalem Awqaf and Aqsa Affairs Department.