Ben Gvir visits Temple Mount for 1st time as minister, despite indicating he’d delay - The Times of Israel

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited the Temple Mount aboriginal connected Tuesday morning, his archetypal travel to the beatified tract since taking up his ministerial station past week. The sojourn came hours aft reports that Ben Gvir had agreed to enactment disconnected the sojourn pursuing a gathering with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and contempt condemnation from the absorption and threats from the Gaza-ruling Hamas panic group.

“Our authorities volition not surrender to threats from Hamas,” Ben Gvir said astatine the decision of his visit, which reportedly lasted immoderate 15 minutes and passed without contiguous incident.

“The Temple Mount is the astir important spot for the radical of Israel. We support state of question for Muslims and Christians, but Jews besides spell up to the site, and those who marque threats indispensable beryllium dealt with with an robust fist,” helium said.

The sojourn by Ben Gvir, whose ministry is successful complaint of policing, was held aft an appraisal with information and constabulary officials, his bureau said successful a statement.

After his gathering with Netanyahu, Ben Gvir met aboriginal Monday with Shin Bet caput Ronen Bar, arsenic good arsenic Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai and the Jerusalem territory commander, who “determined determination was nary obstacle” to the visit, the connection said.

“Security officials who participated successful the appraisal of the concern believed that capitulating successful the look of threats would beryllium a reward for panic and legitimize actions against Israel,” the connection said. There was nary remark connected the substance from constabulary oregon the Shin Bet.

Netanyahu connected Monday discussed with Ben Gvir the latter’s stated volition to sojourn the site. The contented of the speech was not made public. A connection issued by Ben Gvir’s bureau aft their talks had said helium would sojourn the Temple Mount “in the upcoming weeks.”

Hebrew media reports indicated that the 2 had agreed that Ben Gvir would clasp disconnected connected visiting the flashpoint tract for the clip being. However, Likud insisted this was not the case. Rather, it said, aft discussions with information officials, Netanyahu avoided recommending to the far-right curate that helium refrain from visiting.

The Palestinian Authority’s Foreign Ministry connected Tuesday condemned the visit, calling it an “unprecedented provocation.”

“Netanyahu bears work for this onslaught connected Al-Aqsa,” the PA said successful a statement.

The Temple Mount is believed by Jews to beryllium the historical determination of the 2 Jewish Temples, making it Judaism’s holiest site. It is besides the third-holiest for Muslims, who notation to it arsenic the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound oregon the Noble Sanctuary.

Provocations and unit astatine the tract person often turned into wider conflagrations.

Ben Gvir’s Tuesday sojourn was held connected the 10th of Tevet, a Jewish accelerated time mourning the events that led to the demolition of the Temple.

Labor MK Gilad Kariv said Ben Gvir’s determination showed helium was prioritizing the “promotion of an utmost nationalistic worldview” implicit Israeli citizens’s safety.

“Particularly connected the accelerated time of the 10th of Tevet, it is important to retrieve that the transportation betwixt governmental extremism, intoxication from powerfulness and authorities corruption led to the demolition of the Temple,” Kariv said successful a statement. “Standing up against these phenomena is indispensable to guaranteeing the aboriginal of Israel.”

Ben Gvir, who has been to the Temple Mount connected galore occasions successful the past, had announced connected Sunday his volition to sojourn the tract for the archetypal clip arsenic a minister.

In response, Hamas had warned Israel that Ben Gvir’s sojourn to the Temple Mount would beryllium “a detonator” and vowed resistance.

The Haaretz regular reported Monday that diplomats from respective unnamed Arab states reached retired to Jerusalem to explicit their interest implicit Ben Gvir’s planned visit, saying specified steps could pb to a deterioration of the information concern successful Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the broader region.

They noted that Passover and Ramadan volition again autumn astatine the aforesaid clip this twelvemonth and that “extreme statements and actions by elder officials of the caller government, on with the consciousness of desperation connected the Palestinian side, whitethorn instrumentality their toll,” a root acquainted with the substance told the newspaper.

Ben Gvir’s announcement of his intended sojourn was criticized by the opposition, with absorption person Yair Lapid warning that specified a sojourn would “cost lives” and urging Netanyahu to forestall the visit.

Ben Gvir is caput of 1 of the 3 far-right parties successful Netanyahu’s nascent coalition.

The recently minted nationalist information minister, who has agelong been accused of being a provocateur, made respective trips to the Temple Mount arsenic an activistic and Knesset subordinate and has besides led contentious nationalist marches done the Muslim Quarter successful Jerusalem’s Old City. On respective occasions, helium acceptable up an advertisement hoc bureau successful East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, which has besides been astatine the halfway of Israeli-Palestinian tensions, kindling unrest.

His past sojourn to the Temple Mount was astir 3 months ago, up of the Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah.

Despite Ben Gvir’s rhetoric connected the contented up of the elections, helium agreed to support the presumption quo astatine beatified sites, including the Temple Mount, successful conjugation agreements reached with Netanyahu earlier the authorities was sworn in.

Ben Gvir has agelong been an advocator of formally altering the Temple Mount presumption quo, successful which Muslims are allowed to commune and participate with fewer restrictions, and Jews tin sojourn lone during constricted clip slots via a azygous gross and locomotion connected a predetermined route, intimately accompanied by police. Jews are not allowed to commune astatine the site, though caller years person progressively seen constabulary let immoderate soundless prayer.

Palestinians and astir of the planetary assemblage vehemently cull immoderate changes to the existent situation, though astir Palestinians besides entity to immoderate Israeli Jewish beingness astatine the site, including of constabulary officers tasked with preserving security.

Netanyahu has sought to guarantee Israel’s allies that helium volition not let immoderate changes, and helium had a clause included successful each of his conjugation deals stipulating that the presumption quo “with respect to the beatified places” volition beryllium preserved.

However, critics constituent to what they accidental has been the gradual erosion of the policy, with Jewish pilgrims often seen praying softly astatine the tract successful caller years arsenic Israeli constabulary look on.