Israel does not have jurisdiction to decide who enters Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, Arab League officials said on Thursday after a meeting to discuss increasing violence at the site.
Israel's use of force at Al Aqsa - the third holiest site in Islam - is thought to have contributed to a resumption of hostilities this week between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip. Several rockets were fired into southern Israel from Gaza overnight and on Thursday as Israeli aircraft bombed targets in the Palestinian enclave.
“Al Aqsa is a place of worship purely for Muslims,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Al Safadi said, after the meeting in Amman of the Arab League Committee on Jerusalem.
The committee said the Jordanian ministry of Waqf (Islamic property) "owns the exclusive specialty of managing the affairs of the shrine and organising entry to it".
The committee comprises Jordan, Tunisia Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Qatar, Egypt and Morocco. The UAE attended the meeting as a rotating member of the UN Security Council with Khalifa Shaheen Al Marar, Minister of State, heading the UAE delegation.
An Arab League statement issued after the meeting said only Jordanian authorities can decide whether non-Muslims can enter Al Aqsa.
The committee also called on the international community, especially the UN Security Council, to take steps to "stop the illegal Israeli practices in Jerusalem and the [Al Aqsa compound]."
Scores of Palestinians have been wounded around Al Aqsa since last Friday during confrontations with Israeli forces using rubber bullets, tear gas and stun grenades.
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A child runs away from a confrontation between Palestinian protesters and Israeli security forces, at Beita village in the occupied West Bank. AFP -
Palestinian demonstrators at Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem. AFP -
A Palestinian protester uses a sling during a confrontation with Israeli security forces during a demonstration against Jewish settlements, at Beita, in the occupied West Bank. AFP -
Supporters of the Palestinian Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements rally after Friday prayers in Gaza City, following clashes at Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem. AFP -
Palestinians gather around the Dome of the Rock shrine at the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, after Friday prayers. AFP -
Palestinian men wearing national flags kneel to pray near the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al Aqsa Mosque compound. AFP -
Israeli Border Police secure the perimeter of the closed Israeli army Qalandia checkpoint, used by Palestinians to cross from the West Bank into Jerusalem, near the West Bank city of Ramallah. AP Photo -
A Palestinian man removes a police sign from a wall at Al Aqsa Mosque compound after Israeli security forces used force against worshippers gathered for Ramadan prayers. Reuters -
Palestinians return from Al Aqsa Mosque after Friday prayers. AFP -
Supporters of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups rally after Friday prayers in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, to express support for those at Al Aqsa Mosque. AFP -
Worshippers during Friday prayers at Al Aqsa Mosque compound. AFP -
Hamas and Islamic Jihad supporters at a rally on Friday in Khan Yunis. AFP -
Palestinian protesters in Khan Yunis. AFP -
Palestinian girls in front of the Dome of the Rock mosque in Jerusalem's Old City. AFP -
Israeli police officers keep watch after clashes with Muslim worshippers in Jerusalem. The overlapping religious occasions – Ramadan for Muslims, Passover for Jews and Easter for Christians – have increased tensions near contested sacred sites in Jerusalem. Getty Images -
Worshippers during Friday prayers at Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque complex. AFP -
Palestinian protesters after Friday prayers in Jerusalem. AFP -
Worshippers gather for Friday prayers at Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque compound. AFP -
An Israeli police officer stops a Muslim woman on her way to Friday prayer in Jerusalem. Getty Images -
Palestinians clean Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque after Israeli security forces entered. Reuters -
Palestinians clean the entrance to the mosque. Debris and broken glass cover the floor. Reuters -
Palestinian youths who took part in a protest at the mosque are arrested by Israeli security forces. AFP -
A member of the Israeli security forces lifts his baton in front of the Dome of the Rock mosque. Witnesses said Palestinian protesters threw stones at Israeli forces, who fired rubber bullets. AFP -
Israeli security forces detain Palestinian youths after a violent confrontation at the mosque. AFP -
Israeli security forces detain Palestinian protesters following the violence. Reuters -
Israeli security forces take their positions during clashes with Palestinian protesters. Reuters -
Palestinians are kept at bay by Israeli police during clashes. AFP -
Israel said its forces entered to remove rocks and stones that had been gathered in anticipation of violence. Reuters -
Masked Palestinians take position. The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said 59 wounded people were admitted to hospital. AP Photo -
Israeli police fire tear gas towards Palestinian demonstrators. AFP -
Israeli security forces deploy in front of the Lion's gate. AFP -
Palestinians are kept at bay by Israeli police. AFP -
Israeli security forces advance against worshippers and protesters Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque compound. Witnesses said that Palestinian protesters threw stones at Israeli security forces, who fired rubber bullets at some of the demonstrators. AFP -
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said dozens of masked men carrying Palestinian and Hamas flags had marched to the compound early on Friday and gathered stones. AFP -
Palestinian demonstrators throw rocks at Israeli police at Jerusalem's Al Aqsa Mosque compound. AFP -
Videos circulating online showed clouds of tear gas at the mosque. AFP -
Palestinians use boards to protect themselves from Israeli police, who also used rubber bullets and stun grenades. AP -
Worshippers set up barricades outside the mosque during the violence. AP -
Israeli police entered the compound before dawn as thousands of worshippers gathered for early morning prayers during Ramadan. AP -
A man is carried on a stretcher after being wounded during the violence. AFP -
The mosque is part of Haram Al Sharif, the third holiest site in Islam. It is built on a hilltop that is the most sacred site for Jews. AFP -
The mosque has been a major flashpoint for Israeli-Palestinian violence for decades.. AFP -
One of the guards at the site was reportedly shot in the eye with a rubber bullet. AFP
The violence comes as Muslims observe the holy month of Ramadan, which coincides this year with the Jewish festival of Passover, and followed attacks over the past two months by Palestinian militants that killed 14 people in Israel and Israeli raids on the occupied West Bank that killed more than 20 Palestinians.
The escalation has raised fears of another war between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist group that controls Gaza. The two sides fought an 11-day war in May last year, partly triggered by what Palestinians viewed as Israeli transgressions at Al Aqsa.
“We cannot accept any aggression on Al Aqsa. The discussion today reflected this position. Between now and end of Ramadan is a critical period,” Mr Al Safadi said.
The kingdom has custodianship of Al Aqsa, which was under Jordanian administration until Israel occupied East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Jordan has sought a bigger role in international efforts to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict after being side-lined by the US during the four years of Donald Trump's administration, which focused on Arab normalisation with Israel.
The Jordanian claim to administer Al Aqsa traces back to the early 20th century, when Palestinian notables gave the Sharif of Makkah, an ancestor of Jordan's King Abdullah II, custodianship of the site.
Jordan's 1994 peace treaty with Israel does not mention the custodianship, but says Israel respects Jordan's "special role" in Jerusalem's Muslim holy shrines.
