Muslim and Arab governments condemn provocative march in occupied Jerusalem

The now annual “flag march” by extreme right-wing Israelis through occupied Jerusalem yesterday has been condemned by a number of Muslim and Arab governments. The racist march led to at least 79 Palestinians being injured by Israeli security forces and the arrest of 50 others.

Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh warned of the “dangerous consequences” of the security forces allowing extremist Jews to pray in the Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa. He demanded urgent international intervention to stop Israeli violations of holy sites in the city.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry renewed its call for Israel to take measures to preserve the status quo of the holy sites in Jerusalem and not to allow any provocative actions. What happened, it said, was a flagrant violation of the status quo in Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Egypt also condemned what happened in Al-Aqsa. The foreign ministry warned against “the consequences of these developments and provocative practices on the stability of the situation in the [occupied] Palestinian territories.”

According to Qatar, the settlers’ storming of Al-Aqsa reflected “the occupation’s desire to direct the conflict towards a religious war.” The foreign ministry in Doha called for urgent international action to deter Israel.

The possibility of a religious war was mentioned by Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry as it stressed that what happened at Al-Aqsa Mosque “was a provocation of the feelings of Muslims.” It too called for international action, as did the Arab League, to stop Israel from “provocations that inflame religious sentiments.”

Warning of the “deterioration” of the situation in Jerusalem, the Gulf Cooperation Council called on the international community to assume its responsibilities to preserve the safety of Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation echoed this call for international action.

Haniyeh: What happened in Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa ‘will not be forgiven’